Originally Posted by
belfordrocks
Worth pointing out- it's not so much the aircraft that's the issue here. Smaller aircraft are generally flown with junior (read: inexperienced, younger) crew, thus increasing risk of pilot error. Recent accidents on regionals such as Comair 5191, Colgan 3407, PSA 2495 etc. confirm this.
I agree 100%, prop "puddle jumpers" in the winter is a bigger risk because:
1) Prop planes fly at slower at lower altitudes, increasing the chances of running into very bad weather (e.g. ice)
2) The flights are run by regionals instead of mainline airlines (see documentary on
3) The flights tend to be flown by more junior and inexperienced pilots.
Not that it stops me from taking the flights though, but I do look for CRJs over Dash-8s.
Originally Posted by
slawecki
you should stack rank that probability with other risks, to get a proper prospective.
first should be the probability of dying of a non-illness.
then throw in car , ski , hunting, boating, shark attack, lightning,home , work , drug overdose, and so forth.
a quick look found this:
http://www.anesi.com/accdeath.htm
which is for 1999.car vs auto is about 40 to 1.
by 2006:
http://www.notsoboringlife.com/rambl...idental-death/
air missed the top 10.
since larger autos are safer by factor of 2 or 3, i went out and bought a pair of the largest vehicles available.
I think that those statistics hold in general but not for people who fly a lot - like many here on FT. This is just as the chances of dying by electric shock are very low, but go up signifigantly if you are an electrician.