Well there could be any number of reasons:
What is your base for a 'normal' number?
- 10 year rolling average?
- rate per 100,000 hours flown?
- those that make the headlines / lead stories?
- did you put sugar in your tea this morning?
Given that most helicopter hours are flown in the northern hemisphere and it is now summer when the flying intensity increases - perhaps not in UK which has few 'resources' based operations - the 'number' of 'reported' incidents can be expected to increase but what about the rate per hours flown.
If this forum is your source, I can think of half a dozen Canadian incidents in the last month - 4 on one fire alone - which haven't surfaced here so your data source if VERY subjective.
