TSB of Canada To Launch Safety Review of Air Taxis

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) will begin an investigation this year into the safety of that country’s approximately 600 air-taxi operators to identify any systematic issues contributing to what the TSB considers that segment’s poor safety record.

Air-taxi operations fall under Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARs) 703 and include single- and multi-engine aircraft that have an mtow of 19,000 pounds or less and carry up to nine passenger seats.

The TSB said 57 percent of all commercial aviation accidents in Canada involve air-taxi operators and that the segment accounts for 63 percent of all commercial aviation fatalities.

The board will be looking at pilot qualifications, training and decision-making skills, as well as inadequate risk analysis of operations, deviations from standard operating procedures and deficiencies in operational control, especially in self-dispatch operations.