Six accidents involving U.S.-registered business jets killed 23 people in 2023 versus zero fatalities in 2022, according to preliminary statistics gathered by AIN. Five occurred under Part 91, killing 15, and one charter accident accounted for eight fatalities last year. Interestingly, the number of 2023 fatal accidents and fatalities was identical to those of 2021.
Three fatal accidents of non-U.S.-registered business jets killed nine last year, down from four such accidents and 17 fatalities in 2022.
Meanwhile, the number of U.S.-registered business jet nonfatal accidents decreased by more than half—11 in 2023 versus 26 in 2022. There were no nonfatal mishaps involving Part 135 operations last year, compared with five in 2022. One 2023 nonfatal accident involved a Part 91K operation—the first U.S. fractional operator accident recorded since November 2021. Nonfatal accidents of non-U.S.-registered business jets ticked up by one, to six, from a year earlier.
The number of nonfatal and fatal accidents changed little over the last two-year period for U.S.-registered turboprops, but fatalities decreased from 37 in 2022 to 25 last year. All but one of the 10 fatal accidents last year involved Part 91 operations. Five people were killed in a single Part 135 crash in 2023. Fatalities increased in non-U.S.-registered turboprop accidents, from 26 in 2022 to 46 last year.
Runway excursions continued to be the most common type of incident or accident, with 71 recorded by turbine business aircraft last year. Turboprops were involved in 32, of which 12 were classified as accidents. Of the 39 excursions by business jets last year, 16 were classified as accidents, one of which was fatal to all four aboard the non-U.S. charter flight.
The August crash in Russia of a privately-operated Embraer Legacy 600 that killed all 10 on board is currently not included in our charts because it is believed the twinjet was downed by an air-to-air missile. Also not included in our charts is a U.S.-registered, privately-operated Gulfstream III that disappeared on December 12 shortly after taking off from Grenadine. At press time, there is no evidence indicating that the GIII was actually involved in an accident.