Canada: Aviation accidents down 16% in 2018

Aviation accidents in Canada declined 16% last year, according to preliminary statistics released Wednesday by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB). There were 201 aviation accidents reported to the TSB in 2018, down from 240 reported the previous year and below the five-year average of 249. However, the number of fatal accidents ticked up from 22 to 23 from 2017-2018 and total fatalities from 34 to 38. By aircraft type, there were 17 fatal accidents involving fixed-wing aircraft, four involving helicopters and two involving ultralights. The safety agency cited a “strong drop” in flight-training accidents following a peak in 2017 that reduced commercial operator accidents from 97 to 66. The number of commercial accidents in 2018 also fell below the five-year average of 80.<br/>