The number of accidents and fatalities involving U.S.-registered business jets declined last year. According to preliminary statistics researched by AIN, there were 12 accidents of N-numbered business jets last year compared with 20 in 2015.
Both years saw two fatal accidents each, but eight people perished in those crashes last year, compared with 13 in 2015. The two fatal accidents last year occurred under Part 91; in 2015 one fatal mishap was a Part 91 flight and the other was a Part 135 mission.
Accidents involving U.S.-registered turboprops last year were down slightly from 2015, though the number of fatalities was unchanged. Preliminary figures show 31 total accidents last year versus 37 in 2015. Twenty-eight people died in nine turboprop accidents last year, and the same number lost their lives in 10 accidents in 2015. Last year, there were four fatal crashes under Part 91, down from nine in 2015; four under Part 135, up from one in 2015; and one on a civil government flight.
Preliminary data also shows that non-U.S-registered business jets and turboprops on private and corporate charter flights also recorded fewer accidents and fatalities last year compared with 2015.
Accidents and fatalities involving business jets worldwide were down last year compared with 2015, a positive trend since 2014, a year that saw a steep increase in fatalities over previous years. According to preliminary statistics researched by AIN, N-numbered business jets were involved in 12 accidents last year compared with 20 in 2015. Eight people perished in two crashes last year compared with 13 who died in 2015, also in two accidents. In that year, a midair near San Diego between a Sabreliner and a Skyhawk, both flying Part 91, killed all four people in the jet and (not included in these statistics) the sole occupant of the Skyhawk. The other fatal crash in 2015 took nine lives when a Hawker 125-700 on a Part 135 charter crashed on the approach to Akron, Ohio. The two fatal accidents in 2016 befell Part 91 personal flights and involved Cessna 525s, each flown by one pilot.
While accidents involving U.S.-registered turboprops were down slightly last year from 2015, the number of fatalities didn’t improve. Preliminary figures show 31 total accidents last year versus 37 in 2015. But 28 people died in nine accidents in 2016, while the same number lost their lives in 10 accidents in 2015. Last year (compared with 2015 in parentheses), there were four fatal crashes under Part 91 (nine); four under Part 135 (one); and one on a civil government flight (none).
There were no reportable accidents involving turbine business airplanes flown under the Part 91K fractional rule last year; in 2015 there was one. However, the number of incidents involving Part 91K jets climbed to five last year, up from two in 2015. No accidents or incidents involving Part 91K turboprops were recorded for at least the last three years.
Non-U.S.-registered business jets on private and corporate charter flights also recorded fewer total accidents and fatalities last year than in 2015. Six people perished in two accidents last year compared with 11 fatalities in 2015, also in two accidents. The first of the two fatal accidents last year happened on August 16. Two pilots died in the crash of a private Citation 550 while on climb-out from an airport in Venezuela. On October 13 last year, three passengers and the pilot were killed in the crash of a private Citation 500 on approach to an airport in Canada. There were no accidents to charter business jets last year compared with two in 2015.
Preliminary data show that fatalities involving non-U.S. business turboprops also dropped last year versus 2015. In 2016 there were 27 deaths in eight accidents compared with 43 who died in 12 crashes in 2015.