Safety reporting is crucial to aviation safety. It helps us identify risks early and drive improvements across the industry. You should make reports whenever you suspect a safety concern.
Whether you need to report an incident to us or the ATSB depends on both the kind of occurrence and the type of operation. Some occurrences you will need to report immediately, routinely or not at all.
Accidents and serious incidents
It is mandatory to report accidents and serious incidents to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB). These affect the safety of an aircraft.
Call immediately on 1800 011 034 (24 hours). If calling from outside Australia, use +61 2 6230 4470.
After phoning, you need to submit a detailed written report within 72 hours.
Routine reportable matters
You must submit a detailed written report to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau within 72 hours.
Learn more about ATSB reporting requirements.
Voluntary and confidential reporting options
These options support safety improvements but are not legally required.
REPCON
REPCON is the ATSB’s voluntary and confidential reporting scheme. It helps the ATSB identify unsafe procedures or practices and give information to relevant industry participants to facilitate action and awareness about transport safety issues.
If you wish to speak to the REPCON team, you may call 1800 020 505. If calling from outside Australia, use +61 2 6230 5135.
Aviation Self Reporting Scheme (ASRS)
The ASRS allows pilots and other civil aviation authorisation holders to self-report unintentional breaches and seek protection from CASA action once every 5 years. Your self-report must be submitted within 10 days of the contravention.
Reporting unsafe or illegal aviation activities
There are many ways you can report what you believe to be illegal or unsafe aviation activities to us. Report:
- unsafe behaviour
- concerns about aviation safety
- low flying aircraft
- Aircraft and airworthiness defects through the Defect Reporting Service (DRS)
- unsafe drone use.
Safety reporting stickers and A5 card
We’ve made a handy safety reporting sticker to make accessing our reporting forms quick and easy. You can stick it on the back of your tablet or your flight bag for easy access on the go.
You can order your free Safety reporting sticker and AvSafety accident and incident reporting card from our online store.
Making a complaint
Visit the Aviation complaints website if you need help submitting a complaint about aviation-related issues in Australia. They can help send your complaint to the appropriate agency or organisation for resolution.
Examples of complaints may include:
- airline customer service
- aircraft noise
- drone operations
- industry regulation airport curfews
- military flying activity.