Aviation deaths down but accidents increasing for Army

Michael Fabey of Aerospace Daily reported that while aviation-related deaths have decreased, serious accidents have seen a dramatic increase in 2006 over the past three-year period. Analysis of the Army's aircraft records database revealed this trend. "The largest increase, percentage-wise, has been in the number of incidents involving unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) - which only relatively recently have been used by the Army and included in the database - and ground-related aviation mishaps. The Army reported 113 such mishaps in 2006, which was 25 percent more than the 90 reported in fiscal 2005 and a 126 percent increase compared to the three-year average of 50, the Army reported. Class B accidents increased by 50 percent for the year and more than 150 percent compared to the three-year average."