President's Perspective

General aviation came under a cloud in 1999 with the fallout from media and public reaction to the tragedy of John Kennedy Jr.'s fatal crash.

For many days following the accident, AOPA's Communications Division performed near miracles to keep the record clear and factual, giving more than 150 interviews to reporters. AOPA's staff appeared on dozens of network TV news programs. And we backed up all of this with reams of detailed information on general aviation safety. We made the point that one high-profile tragedy does not skew decades of improvement in GA safety.

Now, new National Transportation Safety Board statistics prove our point. The headline on the NTSB's press release told the story: "1999 Aviation Accident Statistics Show an Increase in Accident Rates for Airlines and Commuters, Decrease for General Aviation."

Last year was another stellar year of improvement in GA safety. General aviation's total accident rate per 100,000 hours flown dropped from 7.12 to 7.05. The fatal accident rate was just 1.26 per 100,000 hours flown-about half the rate in 1970.

Going over the NTSB report, I was especially pleased to note a 9.1 percent drop in instructional flying accidents. Clearly, flight instruction is still one of general aviation's safest activities. CFIs and student pilots flew nearly 6 million hours in 1999. That was 22 percent of all GA flying, but it accounted for only 6 percent of fatal accidents. This is a great tribute to the skill and devotion of the nation's flight instructors.

Those of you who are student pilots are aware that your instructor's constant emphasis on safety, tiresome as it may sometimes be, is valid and important. Indeed, if your instructor doesn't harp on safety, maybe it's time to look for another instructor! I was lucky during my primary flight training. The instructor was super-cautious, and that training has stuck with me throughout my more than three decades of flying. I needed the drill. We all do.

Other indices also showed welcome improvement. Fatal personal flying accidents were down an impressive 11.1 percent. All personal flying accidents were down 1.7 percent.

This downward trend in GA accident rates has now stretched over more than a half-century. I like to think it's not entirely coincidental that the AOPA Air Safety Foundation was established 50 years ago this year. Chartered in 1950 by AOPA, the ASF quickly became the leader in general aviation safety education and research. Today, it's the nation's largest private, nonprofit organization conducting continuing pilot education and safety research, and developing information and tools to improve aviation safety for general aviation pilots.

I urge all pilots, and particularly students and recently certificated private pilots, to check the ASF Safety Seminar schedule on AOPA's Web site ( www. aopa.org/asf/schedules) frequently. Take advantage of the free seminars, held in conjunction with the FAA's Safety Program Office, whenever one is held in your area. Believe me, it will be well worth your time and travel to attend.

Year after year for a half-century, ASF has made vital contributions to the improvement in general aviation safety. And for 60 years, AOPA has been active in keeping the GA safety record straight in the public mind, working constantly to allay the groundless fears that too often generate opposition to "little airplanes."

If you have occasion to talk about general aviation safety, you'll find the principal NTSB figures for 1999 on AOPA Online ( www.aopa.org/whatsnew/newsitems/2000/00-1-037.html ). And the Air Safety Foundation's Nall Report, analyzing NTSB figures for 1998 for general aviation aircraft under 12,500 pounds, is also on the Web ( www.aopa. org/asf/publications/99nall.html).

We weathered the 1999 tragedy, and the NTSB statistics show that GA flying is getting safer. But we may face another test this year, sparked by a recent rash of midair collisions-one in Massachusetts, another in Southern California, and the high-profile midair that killed popular Chicago radio host Bob Collins, all within seven weeks.

Although they constitute less than 1 percent of all accidents, midairs are undeniably dramatic. They will always receive extra media attention. And when coincidence brings them close together in time, it's much too easy for a reporter to lead the latest story with, "For the third time in just..." thereby magnifying the erroneous impression that mid-airs are a constant occurrence.

So again this year, we must inform the public about general aviation's always-improving safety record. AOPA and the AOPA Air Safety Foundation will lead that effort, but it's every pilot's duty to support it by flying safely. Let's all do our part to keep the GA accident record on a downhill trend!