Suction>I say that because I weekly make use of commercial air transport and as such I have to place trust in the teams of people responsible for investigating why things sometimes go wrong and ensuring that the appropriate corrective actions are put in place to prevent reoccurance. saying that, I'm a firm believer in approaching everything in life with an open mind.
JBS>I’m often asked via email about safety. Here is my response to friends too:
It’s all odds and chances, like everything else in life.
So, the goal is to increase the odds of an accident by decreasing the chance of it happening.
The chance of a wiring short causing a cargo door to open in an early model Boeing 747 are very very slim and not worth worrying about, one fatal accident every three years is the average by my count.
Likewise sabotage or terrorism. Those categories of accidents are so small they are in the category of ‘other’. Talk about irrational worry, that’s the public about bombers in planes.
The big ones are pilot error and mechanical which add up to about 90% of all accidents.
To reduce the realistic chances of an accident follow this advice:
1. Only fly if the departure and destination weather is good. That means not bad. Fog, rain, snow, tornado, ice, and sandstorms are bad. Do not fly or take off or land in them.
2. Fly a reputable airline. That implies modern well maintained aircraft and well trained pilots.
And that’s it. If there is bad weather don’t go, and if there is no reputable airline, then fly yourself or don’t go. With good weather and a good airplane and a good pilot, the flight will be a success.
This is peacetime and if you cancel the world will not end. You know the departure weather and you can find out the destination weather at estimated time of arrival.
The only thing I can add is to wear a parachute. Just joking, although those of us who have had our lives saved by a parachute don’t laugh at the suggestion.
Cheers,
Barry