GA Safety Stats Improving

General Aviation nearly halved its fatality rate last year in its continuing march toward improving the safety. In addition, deaths in general aviation accidents were at their lowest total in more than 40 years, according to federal air safety officials. Indeed, while the charter industry remains far below...

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General Aviation nearly halved its fatality rate last year in its continuing march toward improving the safety. In addition, deaths in general aviation accidents were at their lowest total in more than 40 years, according to federal air safety officials.
Indeed, while the charter industry remains far below the commercial industry, the National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) preliminary aviation accident data for 2007 showed no fatal passenger carrying accidents involving jet airplanes flown by on-demand air charter operators nor by shared aircraft ownership program companies, according to the Air Charter Safety Foundation. This is especially significant given the continuing focus on operational control for the industry and the growth of this segment of the aviation industry.
While the safety statistics for jets may be laudable, overall statistics show the industry still has much work to do in achieving air carrier standards. On-demand carriers using non-jet equipment suffered 43 deaths in 62 accidents while conducting over 3.7 million flight hours, said the board. However, general aviation saw its accident fatalities go from 703 in 2006 to 491 in 2007. But during 23.8 million hours of private flying in 2007, the number of accidents rose to 1,631, from 1,518 in 2006. On-demand aircraft – charters, air taxis and tours, and medical flights with a patient aboard – saw accident deaths jump from 16 in 2006 to 43 in 2007, according to preliminary annual figures from the board.
“We want to recognize the safety record of this key segment of the aviation industry,” said ACSF President James K. Coyne of the jet statistics. “This is particularly important news for those in the traveling public who are considering chartering a jet or purchasing a share of an aircraft to meet their transportation needs. Passengers should be assured that the accident history shows they are equally safe whether they fly on jets flown by the airlines, by an air charter operator or in a fractional ownership program.”
On-demand air charter operators are certificated air carriers regulated by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) under 14 CFR Part 135. Fractional aircraft program operations are regulated by the FAA under 14 CFR Part 91, Subpart K.
“The ACSF is sponsoring several initiatives to ensure the continued safety of these operations and to enhance safety at all levels of the on-demand air charter and shared aircraft ownership industry,” said ACSF Executive Director Jacqueline Rosser. “A ground-breaking industry safety audit and the release of specialized software for tracking safety-related events are scheduled for deployment mid-year by ACSF.”

From Air Safety Week
No one died during 2007 in U.S. scheduled long-haul and regional air carrier accidents, according to the NTSB. "The U.S. aviation industry has produced an admirable safety record in recent years," said NTSB Chair Mark V. Rosenker. "However, we must not become complacent. We must continue to take the lessons learned from our investigations and use them to create even safer skies for all aircraft operators and their passengers."
The NTSB figures show that Part 121 (aircraft with 10 or more seats) scheduled U.S. airlines flew 18.7 million hours in 2007 with 24 accidents, but no deaths. There was one fatality among nonscheduled U.S. carriers when a mechanic was fatally injured while working on a Boeing 737 in Tunica, Miss. last July. And Part 135 (fewer than ten seats) regional air carriers had three accidents in 302,000 hours of flight, but no loss of life.
Foreign registered aircraft accounted for 11 accidents in the U.S. in 2007, with 3 fatalities from a single fatal accident. Of the 14 accidents involving unregistered aircraft, 6 were fatal and resulted in 7 fatalities.