Summary
On 10 April 2010, a Polish State aircraft carrying a senior
Polish delegation, led by President Lech Kaczyński, to Smolensk
(Russian Federation), to attend a ceremony marking the 70th anniversary
of the Katyń Massacre, crashed at Smolensk airport, killing all
96 persons on board.
Both States agreed that the main technical investigation into
the crash be conducted according to the International Standards
and Recommended Practices specified in Annex 13 of the Chicago Convention,
which normally apply to civil aviation. The report of the Russian
Inter-State Aviation Committee of 12 January 2011 placed most of
the blame on the Polish crew. The Polish Committee for Investigation
of National Aviation Accidents issued its own report on 29 July
2011, concluding that Russian air traffic control and deficiencies
of Smolensk airport also played a part in the accident.
Under Annex 13, Russia had to return the wreckage to Poland
once the technical air safety investigation was completed. The continuing
refusal of the Russian authorities to do so is an abuse of rights,
fuelling speculation that Russia has something to hide. The Parliamentary
Assembly therefore calls on the Russian Federation to hand over
the wreckage of Polish Air Force Tu-154M to Poland without further
delay.
