Originally Posted by
jcjeant
BEA go into action at the request of the Department (Minister) of the French transport as this governement branch is the real boss of the BEA
Yes, but once they are involved as the primary agency, no other ministry or agency is permitted to interfere with or influence the outcome of their investigation, and all communication with entities outside the investigatory process is directly handled by the BEA themselves. It's the same arrangement as exists with the UK AAIB, Canada's TSB and Australia's ATSB - the US NTSB has a similar arrangement, but its charter does allow for their reports to apportion responsibility.
The French authorities have probably been more aware of how such interference can blow up in the faces of the interested parties than most, as the accident which exposed industry and regulatory collusion (namely the DC-10 "Gentlemen's Agreement" between McDonnell-Douglas and the FAA) happened on their soil.
I've yet to hear an explanation for why the "judicial report on behalf of the families" regarding AF447 claims that the BEA report presents a conclusion of pilot error, when in fact it does no such thing.