Aviation Safety
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Plane crashes are surprisingly common, especially small General Aviation aircraft vs. larger commercial operators. In 2018, the fatal accident rate rose above 1 per 100,000 flight hours, which is an increase of approximately 13% from previous years.
Plane Crashes in Colorado
According to the Colorado Sun, between 2014 and 2017, Colorado ranked fifth in number of fatal aircraft crashes in the U.S.
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According to the Federal Aviation Administration, there are around three small plane crashes in the U.S. per day. |
Small Planes, Flight Schools, and Safety
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General Aviation airports are generally located in populated areas, which makes them attractive to locals who want to learn how to fly, as larger airports cannot necessarily handle the infrastructure for commercial and general aviation. However, this presents a risk for people nearby who live within a small radius of a training school flight near the airport (these training flights are generally one hour in duration, so the assumption is within a half-hour flight time radius of the airport in question).
Per the State of Minnesota DOT, Airport Compatibility Manual:
The greatest risk of an aviation-related accident is during takeoff and landing within a few miles of an airport, particularly in areas closest to the ends of the runway and the runway centerline extended. On average, about 200 people are killed in general aviation accidents every year, says the Federal Aviation Administration.
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This is not an abstract question. Innocent bystanders have been killed by small GA planes that fly over their neighborhoods. In March of 2021, a small plane in Orlando crashed after takeoff into a SUV driving through a residential neighborhood near the airport. The passengers of the plane were killed, as was a 4 year old boy riding in the SUV. The cause has not yet been determined, but is suspected to have been engine related (at least 3 of the incidents that have occurred in the front range area so far in 2021 have involved unspecified engine issues). Planes frequently crash into houses, cars, and other structures. San Bernardino in 2019, Nevada in 2006, Virginia in 2020, and Maryland in 2014. Some of these crashes resulted in injuries or deaths for those unfortunate to be inside the homes at the time of the crash.
In 2021 alone, planes have crashed into houses in Logan, Utah; Monterey, California; Hattiesburg, Mississippi; Lyon Township, Michigan; Columbia, South Carolina; Leicester, Massachusetts; Worthington, Ohio; and surely the list will continue to grow. What almost all of these crashes have in common is that they are located in close proximity (~3 miles) to a general aviation airport. 
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Vintage Aircraft and Safety
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From the Dallas Morning News:
Saturday’s collision between two World War II-era military planes at a Dallas air show was the latest in a long list of crashes involving vintage planes used or designed for military purposes. Some recent fatal crashes in the U.S. and abroad: — Oct. 2, 2019: A four-engine, propeller-driven B-17G Flying Fortress bomber with 13 people aboard crashed at Bradley International Airport, north of Hartford, Connecticut, during a traveling vintage aircraft show. Seven people were killed and six were hurt. The National Transportation Safety Board found that pilot error was the probable cause, with inadequate maintenance a contributing factor. — Nov. 17, 2018: A privately owned vintage World War II Mustang fighter airport plane crashed into the parking lot of an apartment complex in Fredericksburg, Texas, killing the pilot and a passenger. The P-51D Mustang was returning after performing a flyover during a living history show at the national Museum of the Pacific War. The aircraft was destroyed, and several vehicles in the parking lot were damaged. — Aug. 4, 2018: A 79-year-old Junkers Ju-52 plane operated by the Swiss company Ju-Air plunged into the Piz Segnas mountain near the Flims ski resort in eastern Switzerland, killing all 20 on board. Retired from Switzerland’s air force in 1981, the German-built plane was carrying tourists who wanted to take “adventure flights” to experience the country’s landscape in vintage planes. Swiss investigators said that “high-risk flying” by the pilots led to the crash. — May 30, 2018: A small vintage airplane that was part of a GEICO stunt team with five other planes crashed in a wooded residential area in Melville, New York, killing the pilot. The World War II-era SNJ-2 aircraft, known as a North American T-6 Texan, had departed from a nearby airport and was heading to Maryland when it crashed. — July 16, 2017: A pilot and an airport manager were killed in Cummings, Kansas, after their World War II-era P-51D Mustang “Baby Duck” crashed into a field. Authorities say the pilot was re-creating a stunt he had performed on the prior day at the Amelia Earhart Festival. — Jan. 26, 2017: A World War II-era Grumman G-73 Mallard flying boat stalled and nosedived into the Swan River in Perth, Australia, during Australia Day celebrations. Both the pilot and his passenger died. — Aug. 27, 2016 — A pilot from Alaska was killed when his 450 Stearman biplane, a World War II-era plane often used for military training, crashed during the Airshow of the Cascades in Madras, Oregon. |
— July 17, 2016 — A T-28 Trojan, used by the U.S. military as a training aircraft beginning in the 1950s and also as a counterinsurgency aircraft during the Vietnam War, crashed at the Cold Lake Air Show in Alberta, killing the pilot. Thousands of spectators witnessed the accident.
— Aug. 22, 2015 — A 1950s-era Hawker Hunter T7 jet crashed into a busy highway near West Sussex, England, killing 11 and injuring more than a dozen others. Investigators said the pilot, who survived, was flying too low and slowly to successfully complete a loop-the-loop. He was charged with 11 counts of manslaughter but ultimately was cleared. — June 22, 2013 — A pilot and a wing-walker were killed when their World War II-era Boeing-Stearman IB75A biplane crashed into the ground and burst into flames during a performance at the Vectren Dayton Air Show in Vandalia, Ohio. Thousands of spectators saw the crash, which federal safety investigators said was likely caused by pilot error. — Sept. 16, 2011 — The pilot of a 70-year-old modified P-51D Mustang called the Galloping Ghost lost control of the aircraft at the National Championship Air Races and Air Show in Reno, Nevada, and crashed into spectators, killing 10 and injuring more than 60. The pilot also died. Federal investigators blamed the crash on worn parts and speed. — July 17, 2016 — A T-28 Trojan, used by the U.S. military as a training aircraft beginning in the 1950s and also as a counterinsurgency aircraft during the Vietnam War, crashed at the Cold Lake Air Show in Alberta, killing the pilot. Thousands of spectators witnessed the accident. — Aug. 22, 2015 — A 1950s-era Hawker Hunter T7 jet crashed into a busy highway near West Sussex, England, killing 11 and injuring more than a dozen others. Investigators said the pilot, who survived, was flying too low and slowly to successfully complete a loop-the-loop. He was charged with 11 counts of manslaughter but ultimately was cleared. |
FAA Safety and Oversight
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According to a report released in 2020 by the US Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, there are structural issues regarding the FAA and their enforcement of existing rules and regulations, not just in General Aviation but throughout the industry as a whole. Some of the highlights from the report are shown below.
"This report details a number of significant lapses in aviation safety oversight and failed leadership in the FAA. The committee is in receipt of many more examples and continues to receive new information from new whistleblowers regularly. Some of the most significant findings include: |
One only has to look at the Aviation Safety Reporting System reports in order to verify some of these issues. This is a site that encourages self-reporting of potential safety issues without fear of repercussion. According to the site, "The ASRS database is the world's largest repository of voluntary, confidential safety information provided by aviation's frontline personnel, including pilots, controllers, mechanics, flight attendants, and dispatchers. The database provides a foundation for specific products and subsequent research addressing a variety of aviation safety issues.
ASRS's database includes the narratives submitted by reporters (after they have been sanitized for identifying details). These narratives provide an exceptionally rich source of information for policy development, human factors research, education, training, and more. The database also contains coded information by expert analysts from the original report which is used for data retrieval and analyses." A recent review of reports from Colorado reveals some troubling trends. Congested airspace, conflicts with training traffic, and understaffed control towers are common themes. "Upon returning to BJC, I spoke with many instructors from different flight schools in the area and it seems like the traffic pattern at LMO has become increasingly dangerous. Many instructors have had near misses with other pilots not making calls or entering the pattern however they wish." ""Aircraft Y was flying through established practice areas at 7,500 feet, flying various heading changes affecting other aircraft in the area. we adjusted course to avoid the traffic accordingly and the aircraft then turned around to a heading that would lead to a converging conflict. Our aircraft was to the right and proceeded with caution keeping an eye on the aircraft in case they made yet another heading change, they did not. we started to alter course to the right in order to maintain our general direction of flight but also resolve the converging conflict. The aircraft was not transmitting on the local frequency and not responding to radio queries. The aircraft never deviated course at any point. Had we not seen the aircraft and taken evasive action the conflict would not have been resolved." "Controller seemed to have no idea where we were, what we were doing, or what we were previously cleared to do. To have the FAA breathing down ZZZ's throat for recent mid-airs (both of which were pilot error and had nothing to do with ATC), and then to be directed into a near-collision on base by BJC Tower, is unacceptable, and tells me that the FAA doesn't care until something makes the news." |
What happens to the victims of a plane crash on the ground?
Further Reading
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The Strategy of Staying Current
Which is safer, a 10,000-hour pilot who has flown only 20 hours in the last year or a 200-hour pilot who has flown frequently in the last month? |