There is no single police force that investigates every alleged crime aboard an international flight. The aircraft’s state of registration is the starting point under the 1963 Tokyo Convention, while the landing state and the state of the aircraft’s operator may also have jurisdiction when the 2014 Montréal Protocol applies between the countries concerned. Which agency investigates and where a case is prosecuted depend on the incident and each country’s laws.
Which country has jurisdiction over an onboard crime?
The first question is where the aircraft is registered. Article 3(1) of the Tokyo Convention says that “The State of registration of the aircraft is competent to exercise jurisdiction over offences and acts committed on board.” The Convention was concluded on 14 September 1963; those are treaty dates, not a statistic. The United Nations Treaty Collection records its conclusion and registration dates.
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Registration is a starting point, not an exclusive answer. The Convention preserves jurisdiction that states may exercise under their national law. It also generally restricts another contracting state from interfering with an aircraft in flight to exercise jurisdiction, subject to listed exceptions.
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When another state may be involved
Under Article 4 of the Tokyo Convention, exceptions include cases where the offence has an effect in that state’s territory, involves one of its nationals or permanent residents, is against its security, violates its aircraft-flight or manoeuvring rules, or requires action to fulfil a multilateral obligation. The ICAO treaty text sets out the Convention’s jurisdiction provisions. The Netherlands government also publishes the Convention text.
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Can the country where the plane lands investigate?
It may, but landing alone does not automatically give every landing state jurisdiction under the Montréal Protocol. The 2014 Protocol adds jurisdiction for a qualifying state of landing and, in defined circumstances, the state of the aircraft’s operator. Its rules matter only where the Protocol applies between the countries involved.
The Protocol addresses situations in which the original framework could leave a landing state unable to act because it was not the aircraft’s registration state. ICAO described that gap and urged states to accelerate ratification in an explanation published on 4 April 2024; that statement is not a current check of participation by any particular pair of states. Read ICAO’s explanation of the Protocol. The UNODC-hosted consolidated treaty text includes the amendments made by the Protocol.
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Who actually conducts the criminal investigation?
Treaty jurisdiction does not assign every case to a named police agency or prosecutor. The authorities that investigate and prosecute are determined by the countries’ laws and institutions, alongside the facts of the incident. Relevant details include the aircraft’s registration and operator, where and how the alleged conduct occurred, where the aircraft landed or diverted, and the people involved.
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What happens when a commander hands over a suspect?
Article 13(4) of the Tokyo Convention requires a contracting state to make a preliminary inquiry immediately to establish the facts when it accepts a person handed over by the aircraft commander under the Convention. The same requirement applies when an aircraft lands in that state after an unlawful seizure or control act covered by Article 11.
The receiving state may take detention or other measures as necessary under its law for criminal proceedings or extradition. A preliminary inquiry is not a requirement to prosecute, nor does it mean that the receiving state’s police are the only investigators.
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Is an aviation accident inquiry the same as a criminal investigation?
No. If the question concerns why an aircraft crashed or suffered another qualifying accident, that is a separate technical inquiry. Under Article 26 of the Chicago Convention, the state where a qualifying accident occurs is called on to institute an inquiry into its circumstances. ICAO says its officials participate only on special request from the state responsible for the inquiry. A criminal investigation may also take place, but the technical inquiry does not itself decide criminal guilt. ICAO explains its role and the accident-inquiry process in its FAQ.
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