The
International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced that the
2012 global accident rate for Western-built jets was the lowest in
aviation history.
•
The
2012 global Western-built jet accident rate (measured in hull losses
per million flights of Western-built jets) was 0.20, the equivalent
of one accident every 5 million flights.
•
This
represented a 46% improvement over 2011, when the accident rate was
0.37, or one accident for every 2.7 million flights.
•
IATA’s
240+ member airlines recorded no Western-built jet hull losses in
2012.
“The
industry’s 2012 record safety performance was the best in history.
Each day approximately 100,000 flights arrive safely at their
destination. Airlines, airports, air navigation service providers,
manufacturers and safety regulators work together to ensure every
flight is as safe as possible. Their dedication and cooperation has
made air travel remarkably safe. Nevertheless, there is still work to
do. Every accident is one too many and each fatality is a human
tragedy. The first commercial airline flight took place on 1 January
1914. Since then the very first flight the airline industry has made
continuous improvement in safety its top priority,” said Tony
Tyler, IATA’s Director General and CEO.
Safety
by the numbers:
•
Close
to 3 billion people flew safely on 37.5 million flights (29.8 million
by jet, 7.7 million by turboprop)
•
75
accidents (all aircraft types, Eastern and Western built), down from
92 in 2011
•
15
fatal accidents (all aircraft types) versus 22 in 2011
•
6
hull loss accidents involving Western-built jets compared to 11 in
2011
•
3
fatal hull loss accidents involving Western-built jets, down from 5
in 2011
•
414
fatalities compared to 486 in 2011
•
Fatality
rate slightly increased to 0.08 per million passengers from 0.07 in
2011 based on Western-built jet operations
•
IATA
member airlines outperformed the industry average for accidents of
all aircraft types (0.71 accidents per million flights compared to
2.01), accounting for 13 of the 75 accidents
IOSA
Airlines
on the IATA Operational Safety Audit Registry (IOSA) experienced no
Western-built jet hull loss accidents. The total accident rate (all
aircraft types) for IOSA registered carriers was 4.3 times better
than the rate for non-IOSA carriers (0.96 vs. 4.11). Today 381
airlines are on the IOSA registry (www.iata.org/registry). For IATA’s
240+ airlines IOSA is a requirement for membership in the
association. That some 140 non-member airlines are on the registry is
a clear indication that IOSA has become the global benchmark for
airline operational safety management.
“IOSA
once again demonstrated its positive impact on aviation safety.
Carriers on the IOSA registry recorded an accident rate that was more
than four times better than their non-registered counterparts. Not
only did IOSA registered carriers have a lower accident rate but the
accidents were less severe in terms of fatalities and damage to
aircraft,” said Tyler.
During
2012, IATA continued its work with airline members to develop the
Enhanced IOSA. Enhanced IOSA adds a further dimension with a focus on
airlines’ internal quality assurance program to implement
self-auditing methodology based on IOSA principles.
Regional
Highlights—Western-built Jet Hull Loss Rates
•
The
following regions outperformed the global Western-built jet hull loss
rate of 0.20: Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) (0.0), Europe
(0.15), Middle East and North Africa (0.0), North America (0.0), and
North Asia (0.0).
•
The
following regions saw their safety performance improve in 2012
compared to 2011: the CIS (from 1.06 to 0.00), Latin America and the
Caribbean (from 1.28 to 0.42), Middle East and North Africa (from
2.02 to 0.0) and North America (from 0.10 to 0.0).
•
The
following regions saw safety performance decline in 2012 compare to
2011: Africa (from 3.27 to 3.71), Asia-Pacific (from 0.25 to 0.48)
and Europe (from 0.0 to 0.15).
•
Latin
America and the Caribbean posted a second consecutive year of
improvement (0.42 vs. 1.28) but the region’s rate was still higher
than the world average.
•
Africa
registered a higher rate, from 3.27 in 2011 to 3.71 in 2012, and it
is still the worst performer by a large margin.
Safety
in Africa
Africa’s
Western-built jet hull loss rate showed a higher rate versus 2011
(3.71 vs. 3.27). The region’s accident rate for all aircraft types
more than doubled (12.44 accidents per million flights from 6.17 in
2011), with 13 accidents in 2012 (up from 8 accidents in 2011).
African
airlines on the IOSA registry had no accidents.
“Africa
is a continent divided on performance. Airlines on the IOSA registry
are performing at or above industry average rates. But the
continent’s overall performance is far from satisfactory. It should
be as safe to travel by air in Africa as it is in any other part of
the world,” said Tyler.
In
May 2012, IATA, with the International Civil Aviation Organization
(ICAO) and a host of other organizations, committed to an Africa
Strategic Improvement Action Plan aimed at addressing safety
deficiencies and strengthening regulatory oversight in the region by
2015. The Plan was endorsed as part of the ‘Abuja Declaration’ by
the Ministerial meeting on Aviation Safety and Security of the
African Union in July and endorsed at the Assembly of the African
Union in January 2013.
“Stakeholders
are united in their commitment to bring all of Africa to world class
safety levels through the adoption of global standards. Passage of
the Abuja Declaration is a key step along this path,” Tyler said.
Critical to the success of this plan is mandatory adoption of IOSA by
African states.
Accident
Analysis
Runway
excursions, in which an aircraft departs a runway during a landing or
takeoff, were the most common type of accident in 2012 (28% of total
accidents). Most (82%) of runway excursions occur following a stable
approach where the aircraft floated beyond the normal touchdown
point, or braking devices did not activate in a timely manner, or
because directional control was not maintained after landing.
This
type of accident continues to present challenges for the industry.
Despite an increase in the runway excursion accident rate in 2012,
the five-year trend in actual accidents remains downward (2008:28,
2009:23, 2010:20, 2011:17, 2012:21). In 2013, IATA will continue to
work with industry partners to support regional runway safety
seminars and to update the IATA Runway Excursion Risk Reduction
(RERR) toolkit. Furthermore, IOSA now requires that airlines make use
of Flight Data Analysis (FDA) programs which can help identify
precursors to runway excursions.
Loss
of Control In-flight
Loss
of Control In-flight (LOC-I) is not one of the most common accident
categories (In 2008 there were 14 LOC-I accidents followed by:
2009:9, 2010:10, 2011:8, 2012:6). However, LOC-I accidents result in
the most fatalities (43% of all fatal accidents and 60% of all
fatalities from 2008-2012). IATA is working with industry partners to
implement a global LOC-I prevention program that will assist
operators to understand the factors involved in these events. In
addition, this program will provide guidance for an enhanced pilot
training and establish a process for feedback into
the IATA Training and Qualification Initiative (ITQI).
Sharing
Information
Data
sharing is crucial to identifying trends that could indicate a
potential safety issue. In 2009, IATA launched the Global Safety
Information Center (GSIC). This incorporates operational and safety
information fed by seven different databases. These are accident
data, operational safety reports, IOSA and IATA Safety Audit for
Ground Operations (ISAGO) audit findings, Flight Data eXchange (FDX),
an aircraft ground damage database and a new cabin safety operational
report database. More than 460 different organizations around the
globe are already submitting information to GSIC. Continuing with the
work started with GSIC, IATA is introducing the new operational data
management initiative, incorporating GSIC and expanding data
management into other arenas such as operations and infrastructure.
“Data
collection and analysis underpins all safety efforts. The more we
understand about how accidents and incidents occur, the better
equipped we are to identify the risk factors. This allows us to take
mitigation steps long before risks become a safety issue that could
contribute to an accident”, said Tyler.
“In
a little more than one lifetime, aviation has gone from being a high
risk activity to a routine part of daily life. As commercial aviation
prepares to enter its second century, we must live up to the ideals
of our industry’s pioneers and recommit ourselves to making
aviation ever safer,” said Tyler.
