Safe skies

The fatal accident rate continues to decline, and the number of total accidents is less than half of what it was in 1990. So far in 2022, we are seeing the numbers hold, meaning GA pilots continue to be passionate about safety and their personal responsibility.

But as I write this piece, I am also looking at some reports of tragic accidents happening in a few places around the country, including the midair collision in North Las Vegas in July. I know that whenever there is an unfortunate GA accident, the media is all over it. What these news reports show us is that our focus on safety can never take a day off. We can never rest. We need a diligent eye on safety every day, every flight. We in GA have and need zero tolerance for accidents.

While safety is a lesson that needs to be reinforced every day, our members are hungry for knowledge; they are looking for every opportunity to become better and safer pilots.

Under the leadership of Senior Vice President Richard McSpadden, the AOPA Air Safety Institute offers free educational resources and initiatives that improve GA flight safety, while still supporting the overall AOPA goal of growing the pilot population. It’s no coincidence that since 1950—the same year our safety division began creating programs—the general aviation fatal accident rate has decreased dramatically, often exceeding reduction goals.

Many of you have used ASI’s amazing tools—from award-winning videos, publications, and online courses to in-person seminars and webinars, flight instructor renewal courses, accident analysis research and reports, and much more. Everything ASI does is created with the goal of helping all pilots fly safe.

One of the most engaging and powerful safety tools that the ASI team has developed is the Early Analysis video series. These practical and respectful videos provide an initial assessment of accidents, such as the North Las Vegas midair, that generate heavy public interest and may indicate important safety lessons for the general aviation community. Early Analysis videos are not designed to replace or mitigate the official findings of the National Transportation Safety Board, which can take up to two years to made final. Rather, the videos provide an initial assessment and lessons that members and pilots can apply to their proficiency and safety.

Other videos in the series include the tragic May STOL event accident in Nebraska; a Cessna 172 emergency landing on a bridge in Miami; a night Learjet crash in California during a circling approach in bad weather; and a Cessna 340 that crashed into a California neighborhood. These videos are sobering reminders of our own vulnerability to poor decision-making and airmanship that can result in tragedy for those on board and on the ground.

In addition to these videos, ASI launched a vital campaign this year called “VFR into IMC: Avoidance and Escape.” This program, which will run through the end of 2022, addresses the most significant cause of weather-related accidents in GA: flying visual flight rules into instrument meteorological conditions (VFR into IMC). According to McSpadden, VFR into IMC is among the top five causes of fatal GA accidents, and these accidents are largely preventable. What may be most interesting is that one-third of these accidents involve instrument-rated pilots.

The VFR into IMC campaign has a wide range of educational materials designed to make you a better pilot in challenging conditions at an online resource center with links to the new Safety Spotlight resource, videos, podcasts, articles, and webinars. The center will be updated throughout the year as more materials and events become available.

In addition, ASI recently updated its Focused Flight Review, which delivers tailored flight reviews in a meaningful, fun experience for pilots and their CFIs. I know first-hand that enhanced flight training is enhanced safety!

You can find all these educational and safety resources on aopa.org by clicking on the AOPA Air Safety Institute tab.

Yes, we know that GA mishaps make their way into the news. It’s good copy for some of the media outlets. What they often fail to mention—and it’s on all our shoulders to keep pounding the safety drum—is that the passion for GA flight is a careful one.

May you continue to find safe blue skies.

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