The U.S. Department of Transportation’s 2016 Transportation Statistics Annual Report released last week presents a cornucopia of aviation industry data. The report’s introductory look at a hot topic, infrastructure, may surprise some readers. “The majority of airport runways (commercial service, reliever, and select general aviation) are in good condition; only 2 percent are considered poor.”
DOT Releases 2016 Transportation Statistics
Key Takeaways:
- U.S. airport runways are largely in good condition, and commercial aviation has maintained an excellent safety record with near-zero fatalities in recent years.
- While general aviation fatalities decreased in 2015, this paralleled a significant reduction in flight hours, with loss of control in flight remaining a leading cause of fatal accidents.
- Unregulated drone use presents growing safety risks to manned aircraft, with pilot sightings increasing five-fold from 2014 to 2015 and instances of interference with critical operations like aerial firefighting.
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