Mandatory and Voluntary Incident Reporting

Incident Reporting Saves Lives! It is critically important that all injuries and accidents, including near misses, are reported so that the causes can be determined and the risk eliminated. Reporting hazards helps prevent additional injuries and increases safety. Making an Incident Report isn't difficult, and we are here to help.

Mandatory Incident Reporting

There are several different Dangerous Goods Mandatory (REQUIRED) Incident Reports:

  1. Hazardous Materials Incident Report
  2. Discrepancy Reports Involving Passenger Baggage
  3. Discrepancy Reports Involving Cargo
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(a) Immediate notice of certain hazardous materials incidents

When and how do I report a Hazardous Materials or Dangerous Goods Incident?

The Hazardous Materials Regulations (49 CFR 171.15 and 171.16) require you to report certain types of hazardous materials or dangerous goods incidents. Incident reports are vital to transportation safety. The report data allows regulatory organizations to identify trends and emerging safety risks, helps to prioritize resources based on risk, and to identify repeat shippers of undeclared dangerous goods.

You are required to submit an immediate notice as soon as practical but no later than 12 hours after the occurrence to the National Response Center (NRC) when any of the following incidents occur in transportation, including loading, unloading, and temporary storage:

You can make immediate notices to the National Response Center (NRC) by telephone at 800-424-8802 (toll free) or 202-267-2675 (toll call).

(b) Detailed Hazardous Materials Incident Report (DOT Form F 5800.1)

Air Carriers are required to file a Form F 5800.1 (PDF) with the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) for incidents that occur during commercial transportation of hazardous material or dangerous goods (loading, unloading, and temporary storage), under 49 CFR 171.16:

For air incidents, copies of the F 5800.1 (PDF) report must be submitted to the FAA. Submit a copy of the F 5800.1 report to the FAA by emailing 9-AWA-AXH-Air5800-1Reports@faa.gov.

In accordance with 49 CFR 175.31, air carriers must notify the FAA's Office of Hazardous Materials Safety of the following passenger-related discrepancies as soon as practicable:

To report discrepancies by phone, call the office listed under the Compliance and Safety Resolution Contacts nearest your location.

To electronically report dangerous goods discovered in passenger's checked or carry-on baggage to FAA's Office of Hazardous Materials Safety:

In accordance with 49 CFR 175.31, air carriers must notify the FAA's Office of Hazardous Materials Safety of the following cargo-related discrepancies as soon as practicable:

To report discrepancies by phone, call the office listed under the Compliance and Safety Resolution Contacts nearest your location.

To electronically report discrepancies for dangerous goods cargo, including undeclared dangerous goods, email the FAA's Office of Hazardous Materials Safety at 9-AWA-AXH-175-31CargoNotifications@faa.gov.

Voluntary Incident Reporting

There are two different Voluntary Incident Reporting Programs:

  1. Voluntary Disclosure Reporting Program (VDRP) – Air Carrier reports an apparent regulatory violation involving the offering, acceptance, or transportation, of hazardous materials under 14 CFR and/or 49 CFR.
  2. Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) - Anyone involved in aircraft transport of Hazardous Materials report to describe close calls, violations, and safety-related issues.

U.S. Air Carriers certificated under 14 CFR Parts 119, 121, 125, 135, and to foreign Air Carriers operating in the U.S. that are issued operations specifications under 14 CFR part 129 are encouraged to voluntarily disclose violations of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR).

The FAA believes that aviation safety is well served by incentives for operators to identify and correct their own instances of noncompliance, and to invest more resources in efforts to preclude their recurrence. The Hazardous Materials VDRP allows air carriers to submit information disclosing their own non-compliance with the HMR without incurring civil penalties if the appropriate process is followed.

For further information or to disclose a violation under the VDRP, see the VDRP user guide.

hazmat safety reporting from nasa


Anyone involved in aircraft transport of Hazardous Materials (HAZMAT) or Dangerous Goods is invited to file a confidential NASA ASRS report to describe close calls, violations, and safety-related issues. This VOLUNTARY Incident Report is CONFIDENTIAL and NONPUNITVE.

The FAA and NASA need your help to identify and mitigate HAZMAT-related safety issues.

There are many reasons to provide information about the HAZMAT event or situation that you experienced. The FAA, NASA and other members of the aviation community are committed to improving aviation safety. Through conducting research and analysis of reports, ASRS can share: