General Aviation Accidents, 1983-1994: Identification of Factors Related to Controlled-Flight-Into-Terrain (CFIT) Accidents
Executive Summary
This report describes the characteristics of general aviation (GA) accidents and identifies factors related to the occurrence of controlled-flight-into-terrain (CFIT) accidents in GA.
This study used the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) database of 31,790 aviation accidents that occurred between 1983 and 1994, inclusive. In the NTSB aviation accident database, 86.7% of these accidents were GA accidents. This study analyzed the subset of accidents involving GA airplanes and helicopters.
A controlled-flight-into-terrain accident (CFIT) is any collision with terrain (or water) in which the pilot was in control of the aircraft but was not aware of the airplane's altitude, the terrain elevation, or the airplane's position in terms of latitude or longitude. This study classified all GA accidents as occurring due to either CFIT or other causes. Further analyses identified factors that were related significantly to GA accidents due to CFIT.
These analyses show that 4.7% of GA accidents occur due to CFIT; these accidents result in 1.4 fatalities per accident, compared with 0.33 fatalities in all other GA accidents. CFIT-type accidents account for 17% of GA fatalities. Instrument conditions and older pilots are factors associated with CFIT-type accidents. Approximately one-third (32%) of the GA accidents in instrument conditions are related to CFIT. Analyses of this database provided insight into factors related to CFIT-type GA accidents.
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