Safety
Washington Report: GA safety: It depends on the viewpoint
Although the number of general aviation accidents last year was the lowest total since record keeping began in 1938, the NTSB noted that the accident rate

Although the number of general aviation accidents last year was the lowest total since record keeping began in 1938, the NTSB noted that the accident rate increased slightly from 6.33 accidents per 100,000 flight hours in 2000 to 6.56 accidents last year.

General aviation accidents declined from 1,838 in 2000 to 1,721 last year, a drop of 6.4 percent. But GA was the only category of air transportation to report a hike in its accident rate, which the NTSB attributed to the fact that fewer hours were flown by general aviation aircraft last year than in the year before. Fatal accidents dropped from 343 to 321, also a 6.4-percent decrease from 2000. Based on the current flight-hour estimates, the fatal accident rate increased slightly from 1.18 to 1.22 accidents per 100,000 hr flown.