Alphamatt
Almost every fatal accident (or accident in which serious injury is sustained) in light aircraft is a consequence of pilot error. For example, the vast majority of forced landings are survivable if the pilot maintains control, selects and achieves a reasonable landing site. Therefore the best way of securing a safe outcome in inevitably to ensure you are well trained AND, as importantly, maintain your skills and currency throughout your “career”.
There remain just a few scenarios where piloting skill will still not secure a successful outcome. These include forced landings at night, ditching, structural failure, mid air collisions and weather encounter.
Forced landings at night are inevitably more often than not a lottery. Pilot skill will still give a reasonable chance of a successful outcome but the perfect glide into the side of a barn is still not health inducing. Therefore either don’t do it (fly at night) or fly an aircraft with a parachute.
Ditching, whilst usually successful (pilot skill), invariably ends up with hypothermia killing the passengers and crew. Never fly over water without a raft and / or an immersion suite.
Structural failure almost never happens. Either don’t worry about it (probably as much chance of happening as winning the lottery) or buy an aircraft with a chute. Avoiding aerobatic aircraft might help.
Mid air collisions result in the same outcome as structural failure. Therefore a chute is the only realistic means of improving the outcome. However, a better solution is to reduce the risk of collision avoidance in the first place. In reality everyone will tell you the chances of a mid air is remote, very remote. Never the less personally I wouldn’t fly without some form of CAS, (given a portable unit can cost only a few hundred pounds) and I would ensure I have a sound understanding of what I can do to reduce the risk – well covered on this forum.
Weather continues to be a significant reason cited for pilot fatality. Almost always the weather in itself is the precursor to the accident. For example, CFIT is ultimately pilot error, not a feature of the weather. All weather accidents can be avoided by being cautious about the weather you fly in. Assuming you fly for pleasure, you have no need to push weather limits, and if you do, expect the weather to bite. Pilot training and some of the above when it does bite will help secure a successful outcome.
In short if you exclude every accident which was ultimately down to pilot error and took all the precautions I have mentioned (and maybe a few others I haven’t included) flying is extremely safe.