Fly Safe

On June 6, at AOPAs Homecoming Fly-In, the association and the FAA formally kicked off a new program focused on improving general aviation safety. Dubbed Fly Safe, the FAAs campaign will be highlighting GA accident causes and solutions in partnership with AOPA and other industry organizations. The agency says preventing GA fatalities is one of its top priorities, with the goal of reducing the GA fatal accident rate by 10 percent over a 10-year period (2009-2018). Noting that loss of control (LOC)-mainly stalls-accounts for the largest number of GA accidents, the new program will start there.

Tuesday, July 21, 2015 at 12:00 AM ET

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Key Takeaways:

The FAA, in partnership with AOPA, launched the "Fly Safe" program to enhance general aviation (GA) safety, aiming to significantly reduce the GA fatal accident rate.
The program's primary focus is on preventing Loss of Control (LOC) accidents, particularly those involving stalls, as they are the leading cause of GA fatalities.
"Fly Safe" employs a non-regulatory, data-driven strategy to address common contributing factors such as poor pilot judgment, lack of proficiency, and failure to recognize or correct stalls.
Efforts include collaborating with manufacturers on stall-resistant aircraft designs, promoting advanced pilot training (e.g., AoA concepts), and utilizing technologies like autopilots to prevent LOC incidents.

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On June 6, at AOPA’s Homecoming Fly-In, the association and the FAA formally kicked off a new program focused on improving general aviation safety. Dubbed “Fly Safe,” the FAA’s campaign will be highlighting GA accident causes and solutions in partnership with AOPA and other industry organizations. The agency says preventing GA fatalities is one of its top priorities, with the goal of reducing the GA fatal accident rate by 10 percent over a 10-year period (2009-2018). Noting that loss of control (LOC)—mainly stalls—accounts for the largest number of GA accidents, the new program will start there.

An LOC accident “involves an unintended departure of an aircraft from controlled flight” and can happen “anywhere and at any time.” The new program comes on the heels of last year’s new streamlined policy for angle of attack (AoA) system approvals and now moves into outreach to the GA community on loss of control topics. According to the agency, there is a fatal LOC accident every four days.