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2009 was the year with
the lowest number of fatal accidents on record for the 31 Member States of
the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), according to preliminary data.
However this good safety record was overshadowed by the accident of an Airbus
A330 over the Atlantic. This was the only
fatal accident for aeroplanes registered in an EASA Member
State in commercial air
transport*. Despite this, the number of fatalities in 2009 (228 fatalities)
is significantly above the decade average. The high number of non-fatal
accidents (24) in 2009 indicates that further progress in safety is
necessary. In comparison, the decade 1999-2008 had every year on average 27
non-fatal and 5 fatal accidents with 92 fatalities.
For other world
regions the safety record in 2009 has been marred by an accident of an Airbus
A310 in Comoros and a
Tu-154 in Iran.
In total there were 41 fatal accidents involving aircraft registered outside
EASA Member States. This is below the decade average of 51 fatal accidents
(1999-2008), but not the lowest in the decade. In these accidents there were
573 fatalities, the second lowest number in the decade.
Preliminary data
shows that in 2009, the number of fatal accidents worldwide in commercial air
transport with helicopters was the second lowest for the decade: only in the
year 2000 the number of fatal accidents was lower. When looking at the
three-year moving average, it appears that for the last five years the
average is more or less constant. The accident numbers for EASA Member States
remain small and no further conclusions can be drawn. Two fatal accidents
occurred in Europe in 2009. Two people died
in Poland
when an emergency medical helicopter crashed. In April, sixteen people died
when a helicopter crashed during an offshore flight from an oil platform to Aberdeen, Scotland.
Further information
on safety in civil aviation will be included in the "Annual Safety
Review 2009” due to be published by EASA later this year.
* Fatal Accidents categorised as such using ICAO Annex 13
definition. Accidents include aeroplanes or helicopters with maximum take-off
mass above 2 250kg conducting commercial air transport operations (including
air taxi, ferry/positioning and emergency medical services). Aircraft
registration was used to assign aircraft into world regions. All data is
preliminary and subject to review and change as more information becomes
available.
Note to editors:
The
European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) was set up by the EU in 2003 to
promote the highest common standards of safety and environmental protection
in civil aviation. Based in Cologne, the Agency currently employs nearly 500
experts and administrators from all over Europe | 
