*2.3. Data Collection*

Data were gathered from seven organizations using a semi-structured interview template. The participating organizations were involved in aircraft maintenance and continuing airworthiness activities. Building trust and commitment, as proffered by Chatzi [44] and Chatz et al., [45] was deemed to be a necessary tenet of a successful data collection exercise. Managing the interview process with the support of senior staff complimented visible top-down support for the research and ensured there would be no confusion regarding access to what some organizations often classify as sensitive commercial data. The aim was to explore how learning from incidents occurs and what can constrain learning in the area of focus. The pilot phase ensured the desired outcome of the main data collection phase would be congruen<sup>t</sup> with the aims of the study. The interviews were recorded, transcribed and participants could not be identified from the recordings or transcripts. Full ethical approval for the data gathering was granted by the University.
