CASA has reported to the media that for the last 15 years there has been a steady annual reduction in the number of fatal aircraft accidents in OZ and that there is no need for alarm as suggested recently by ex-CASA Board Member Dick Smith - report HERE
 
The CASA statement of course is correct but hides one important factor - Dick Smith is also correct in his statement (HERE) that fatal accidents involving aircraft flown by professional pilots are increasing
 

News Desk Comment

15 years ago GPS was Unknown 1991 - GPS Introduced to the Aviation World Late 1990's - IMC Rating for Private Pilots

More on News Desk Comment - circa 1996

Over the past 15 years there has been a substantial reduction in fatal aircraft accidents - with private aircraft flown by private pilots - but not so for aircraft flown by commercial (professional) pilots
 
With the introduction of GPS in '91 navigational information that was normally available to the (professional) pilot in an IFR category aircraft suddenly became available to private owners and pilots flying VFR at a price they could afford - as a result when this technology was introduced in the early '90's there was a steady increase in flying safety - particularly among the non-professional ranks who took to using GPS's "like a duck takes to water" - there was a significant reduction in the cockpit workload compared to the 'Dead Reckoning Navigation' system that enhanced all the safety aspects associated with the normal procedural flying required in OZ

December 23 2005
A 4-seat Robinson R44 helicopter has struck a power line spraying cotton in a paddock on Oakleigh Station 200km south-west of Gladstone
 
The pilot escaped injury after his machine struck the power line and crashed - the aircraft was destroyed

 
This accident is the forth in QLD over the past two weeks involving rotary-wing machines - only one was fatal - a gyrocopter line strike near Charleville
Previous News Desk reports on rotary-wing accidents start by clicking HERE

December 26 2005
The pilot and his female passenger onboard an ultralight home-built Kitfox aircraft escaped without serious injury after their machine crashed into the sea off the central Queensland coast after an engine failure
 
"He's attempted to land on the beach but crashed into the water some distance from the beach"

 
The crash was observed by campers at Stockyard Point who launched their tinnies and rescued the pilot and his passenger from the upturned aircraft
 
The damaged machine was later pulled ashore

December 27 2005
A parachute drop aircraft - an exit door modified Cessna C182 - experienced an engine problem at 10,000' during a routine drop - the 19-year-old pilot appears to have messed up the 'glide' approach (from 10,000') to the Torquay airstrip on Victoria's south-west coast with the machine ending up inverted in the ocean

 
Police reported ..."at around 200 feet it lined up for another approach to land again the engine failed and the pilot unfortunately had to put the aircraft down as there was not enough altitude and it landed into the white water which caused the aircraft to flip"