Articles Posted in Aviation Accidents

With the economy in poor condition still, some safety experts are warning that businesses may be cutting costs and increasing the odds of accidents in doing so. Some worry that small businesses and larger companies may be cutting costs in ways that compromise safety as well as customer service. Some industry insiders working with aerospace industries have expressed worry that airline companies may be among those who are cutting safety as they cut costs.

One area of concern is airplane maintenance. While safety regulators set standards for maintenance, regular maintenance takes an airplane out of circulation for up to a week. During that week, the airplane is in a hangar getting repairs and is not making any money. Industry insiders note that during a tough economy airlines want to keep planes as full as possible and in the sky as possible.

Another issue is the use of vendors maintain airplanes. These independent vendors work either in Central America or near airports and work quickly on a number of planes. In some cases, language issues or lack of training can mean airplane maintenance mistakes. In fact, federal safety officials have voiced concerns about vendors since 2005, but vendors continue to be used for airplane maintenance because they are quick and inexpensive.

There are several things that passengers can do to reduce the odds of being in an aviation accident. Although aviation accidents are relatively rare, they can occur. Use these tips to avoid sustaining a serious brain injury, burn injury, spinal cord injury, or fatality in an aviation accident:

1) Fly on larger aircraft. Larger, commercial aircraft crash far less often. In the event of an accident, larger aircraft with more than 30 passenger seats also provide better chances of survival. Smaller, personal aircraft are far more likely to crash.

2) Choose non-stop flights. Non-stop flights expose you to fewer take offs, ascents, landings, and descents of the plane, the phases of flight when accidents are most likely to occur. Therefore, non-stop flights are statistically safer.

3) Store only light items in the overhead bin. Heavy items can put too much pressure on the overhead bins and in heavy turbulence, these items can fall through the bins, causing brain injuries. Store heavy items under the seat in front of you.

4) Review the safety features of the plane. Locate the emergency exits nearest you, and listen to the pre-flight safety briefing provided by the flight attendants. Reviewing emergency information ensures that this information is fresh in your mind in case you need it.

5) Pay attention to the flight attendants. If a flight attendant asks you to do something, do it promptly. Flight attendants are there to ensure that your flight is safe as well as pleasant. If they ask you to do something specific, such as store your luggage in a specific manner, you can be certain that there is a good safety reason for doing so.

6) Avoid unbuckling your seatbelt or wandering around the cabin without need. If you are on a long flight, you can prevent blood clots by taking brief walks around the cabin. However, keep traveling around the cabin to a minimum. If you hit turbulence, you’re more likely to sustain a personal injury. For most of the flight, stay in your seat with your seatbelt securely fastened, even if the seatbelt light is off. Your seatbelt can save you from serious injury if the plane encounters unexpected turbulence.

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Airplane accidents can occur on commercial flights, airplane tours, chartered flights, or on personal airplanes. In all cases, aviation accidents carry the risk of serious personal injuries, including spinal cord injuries, brain injuries, burn injuries, broken bones, and even fatalities. In many cases, investigating an airplane accident takes a lot of time and many resources. Unfortunately, while an investigation is ongoing, the families of victims often have to wait for answers.

Although airplane accidents involving commercial liners are extremely rare, they can occur. When these sorts of accidents occur, they are often widely covered by the media, and as a result some people fear flying. Aviation accidents, however, are more likely to occur with small private aircraft. In fact, such accidents involving small aircraft often are unreported, and therefore some people have the mistaken belief that smaller airplanes are safer.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reports that travel by air will double in the next two decades. This may mean that more aviation accidents will occur, simply as more planes are in the sky. Preventing such accidents is obviously a big priority for federal officials and for insurance companies.

Many people assume that aviation accidents and injuries caused by airplanes occur most often in an airplane crash. Research, however, shows that most injuries sustained in airplanes occurs as a result of air turbulence. Air turbulence can cause brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, broken bones, and other serious personal injuries. In some cases, it can even lead to death.

Air turbulence occurs when an airplane hits an air pocket. This can cause the plane to shift suddenly, drop several hundred feet, or begin to shake dramatically. As a result, anyone who is standing up or moving around the cabin can be slammed against the sides, floor, or ceiling of the cabin. If overhead containers are open during a bout of air turbulence, bags and other heavy objects can come flying out and hit unsuspecting passengers. Turbulence can also cause people to lose their footing and fall. All of this can lead to injuries.

If a pilot realizes that he or she will be approaching some air turbulence, he or she will often alert passengers and turn on the seatbelt sign. Often, passengers will be instructed to return to their seats and buckle their seat belts. Unfortunately, pilots do not always have warning before encountering air turbulence. Air turbulence may happen very suddenly. Some passengers have a false sense of comfort, thinking that as long as the seatbelt sign is not on they can stretch, walk around the cabin, or undo their seat belts with complete safety. This is not entirely the case.

Many passengers assume that there is nothing they can do to prevent airplane accidents or the serious injuries – ranging from spinal cord injuries to head injuries – which often result from these crashes. While most passengers have little control over airplane maintenance or the actions of the air crew, though, there are several things they can do to reduce the possible injuries that can result from an airplane accident:

1) Stick with larger planes and established airlines. Small planes, newer companies and casual flights at fairs or other events simply have more unknowns and carry more risks. Larger airlines have a reputation to uphold and often screen their crews and monitor their plane conditions more carefully as a result.

2) Listen to the pre-flight safety information and read the safety data card in the seat pocket in front of you before every flight. If you fly often, it may be tempting to zone out during the safety information session, but reviewing safety information each time is important, experts claim, since it ensures that all safety information is fresh in your mind.

Florida aviation accidents are in the news quite frequently, and reading about these accidents can be quite frightening. Due to their very nature, airplane crashes lead to fatalities very frequently. Survivors of accidents often have serious injuries, such as burn injuries, fractured bones, spinal cord injuries, brain injuries, and other serious problems.

Many passengers do not realize that there are several things that can be done to reduce the chances of an airplane accident. The following tips will help you stay safer in the skies:

1) Choose non-stop flights. Statistically, accidents are far more likely to occur during takeoff, climb, descent, and landing. When you choose non-stop flights, you not only enjoy greater convenience but you also reduce the amount of time you spend in the higher-risk stages of a flight.

Researchers from the Center for Disease Control and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and have found that Alaska has an annual pilot fatality rate of 410/100,000 a year. This is the highest in the nation. The research conducted by the Center for Disease Control and the National Institute for Occupational Safety uncovered that the key factors leading to fatality in airplane crashes include post-crash fire, inclement weather, and non-Alaskan residency.

While Florida’s annual pilot fatality rate is lower than Alaska’s, airplane crashes are a concern in this state. Many of the findings from the Alaska research study can also help prevent fatalities and serious injuries – including burn injuries and spinal cord injuries – which are a factor in airplane crashes. According to the findings of the study, pilots and passengers can increase their chances of survival in a plan crash by:

1) Wearing shoulder belts. The research conducted by the Center for Disease Control and the National Institute for Occupational Safety found that pilots and passengers who wore shoulder belts or seat belts had a significantly higher chance of surviving a crash.

Mark V. Rosenker, Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recently attended an aviation conference, where he again brought up the NTSB’s concern with older aircraft. Rosenker pointed out that many aviation accidents in recent years have been attributed to aging aircraft that have not been properly maintained. He also pointed out that airworthiness programs implemented at each stage of the service life of aircraft can prevent many of these accidents.

Rosenker gave a speech at the California conference. In his speech, he pointed out the difficulty in even defining an aircraft as old. Age of an aircraft can be determined by a number of factors, and actual chronological age is only one of these factors. The number of flight hours, the environment in which a plan has flown, and the number of flight cycles can also all affect the age and safety of an aircraft. In addition, some parts of a plan may age at a different rate. According to Rosenker, all these factors must be considered in order to keep planes safe.

Airplane accidents cause serious injuries and fatalities each year. Personal injuries ranging from spinal cord and brain injuries to burns and even death are all caused each year by aviation accidents, and some of those accidents, according to Rosenker and the NTSB, are caused by aging aircraft. By creating a viable strategy to keep older planes safer, the NTSB believes it can reduce accident rates.

The Federal Aviation Administration and Florida attorneys are calling for a review of air accidents and laws governing aviation in the state of Florida. The move comes from the fact that Florida is seeing an upswing in aviation traffic, partly due to its fairly flat lands and clear weather. More travelers into the state are also contributing to more traffic, so that the state is now the country’s second busiest state in terms of air traffic, according to an MSNBC report.

More traffic in Florida, obviously, increases the likelihood of aviation accidents. This is especially the case since state regulations have actually decreased in Florida while traffic has increased. Florida, for example, has replaced abandoned mandatory runway operation reports with a voluntary online reporting system. The state has also handed over approval of expansion of private airports to local zoning authorities.

Some are worried that these two factors – increased air traffic and decreased state regulations – may contribute to higher Florida aviation accident rates. Some studies suggest that aviation accidents in Florida are already on the rise, especially in the central part of the state. Over the past 6 years, Florida has seen an average of 131 aviation accidents per year. Volusia County alone averages between 10 and 12 such accident annually.

As both Florida attorneys and aviation accident victims know, aviation accidents are serious business. Many of these accidents lead to serious personal injury and a significant number lead to fatalities. Permanent disabilities are also caused by aircraft accidents each year. The FAA is replacing its Aviation Safety Program, with its focus on preventable accidents, with the FAA Safety Team Program. This new program will stress “elusive accident causes.” It is hoped that this move will reduce the number of accidents in the state.

If you or a loved one have already been injured as a result of an aircraft, though, you need to contact a qualified Florida attorney. A good lawyer can advise you of your rights and can ensure that you get the quality medical treatment you deserve.

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A pilot who survived a 2004 biplane accident will be charged with negligent homicide, according to authorities. Pilot Mark Strub was the survivor of the August 28, 2004 airplane accident in which passenger Kimberly Reed was killed. On the day of the accident, Strub was donating his time and his plane to offer free 10-minute place rides as part of the Wisconsin Rapids 2004 Children’s Miracle Network Balloon Rally.

Reed was not the only passenger to board Strub’s Stearman PT-13 on that day in 2004. Three people prior to Reed boarded the plane and got a free plane ride with no incident. According to the NTSB Probable Cause report filed about the accident, Reed asked Strub specifically for an aerobatic flight, which involved both pilot and passenger to wear parachutes.

The aircraft carrying Strub and Reed climbed to 3,000 feet AGL and Strub performed a number of manoeuvres in the air, including one loop, a Cuban eight, and two hammerhead stalls. After the successful flight, Strub was returning his passenger to the airport. While flying over the Wisconsin River at an altitude of 50 feet, the aircraft struck power lines. The aircraft – with both on board – came to rest inverted in Nepco Lake. The aircraft was submerged in about 3 or 4 feet of water. It is believed that Reed died on impact. Strub sustained only minor injuries.