The 2012 Aviation Insurance Association (AIA) annual conference opened with a near-record 550 attendees in an atmosphere of stability in terms of underwriting capacity and casualty claims during 2011. The total absence of Part 121 airline fatal accidents in that period has had a favorable effect on underwriter profits and policy claims, since air transport is the largest segment of aviation insurance in terms of insured risk. Zero airline fatalities led aviation litigation attorney and AIA past president John Scott Hoff to comment, “That is really bad news for the attorneys.” He noted that accident rates continue to drop in general aviation, where mishaps in the experimental (“homebuilt”) category fell by 20 percent. Business aviation was another story, however, where fatalities rose to 32 from 17 in 2010.