We understand that any accident that results in a serious injury or loss of life can have profound effects. A fatality begins a complex process of grieving for those close to the individual(s) involved. Families and friends naturally want to know why the accident happened, and how to prevent someone else having to experience such loss. This page and accompanying brochure attempt to answer some of your questions about a transport safety investigation conducted by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) where there has been a fatality. The ATSB is governed by a Commission and is entirely…

Non-factory amateur-built and experimental (ABE) aircraft are a popular alternative to general aviation aircraft. In Australia, there is little comprehensive data on these aircraft and what people do when building or buying them second-hand. Key players in this part of aviation were consulted in developing a survey to better understand these aircraft builders and owners. The survey was distributed electronically and in hard copy to owners of VH-registered ABE aircraft, and about 50 per cent of active ABE aircraft owners answered the survey. It focussed on choice of aircraft, construction and…

The aim of this study was to provide information to the flying community concerning those common errors they perceived to be most detrimental to flight safety. The ATSB sent the 'Aviation Industry Safety Survey' to 5000 commercial pilots throughout Australia in November 2003. The survey asked pilots about their safety experiences during the previous year and to report the most serious error they made or saw during that time. They were also asked to describe briefly what they thought were the main factors contributing to the error and how the situation was recovered. Demographic information…

While most runway excursions are relatively minor with no serious injuries or aircraft damage occurring, they do have the potential to pose a serious risk to public safety and infrastructure. This has been illustrated by several significant runway overruns around the world in 2007 and 2008, resulting in hundreds of on-board fatalities, as well as ground fatalities and significant property damage in communities adjacent to airports. Further analysis of the Ascend World Aircraft Accident Summary set of 120 runway excursions on landing involving commercial jet aircraft between 1998 and 2007 (…

In 2009, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) produces its third edition of Australian Aviation Safety in Review as part of its role to enhance public awareness of aviation safety. This Review has been developed to provide a readily accessible analysis of the Australian aviation industry, with a major focus on communicating the key safety trends. This publication covers the major aircraft operation categories of passenger transport (regular public transport and charter) and general aviation. Sport and recreational aviation is also discussed, as is the burgeoning trend towards amateur…

Wires have long been recognised as one of the greatest hazards facing aerial-work pilots. The outcome of colliding with wires varies from being harmless to unforgiving. Australia averages 7.6 wire strikes each year. Some of these are fatal with aircraft either substantially damaged or completely destroyed.

The threat and error management (TEM) model provides a non-technical tool to help pilots identify and manage threats (hazards) and errors during flight. In preparation for regulatory changes that come into effect in July 2009, the Guild of Air Pilots and Air Navigators (GAPAN) developed a TEM 'train-the-trainer' course for general aviation and low capacity air transport operations. Between August and October 2007, GAPAN conducted TEM training in 10 locations throughout Australia. Two surveys were administered to TEM course participants by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau: one…

(a report produced and published by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, Canberra, Feb 2004) The purpose of this publication is to examine trends in the numbers of railway accident deaths in Australia in the 1980s and 1990s in the light of comparable data from other countries that are members of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Overall, the data indicate that in the period from 1980 to 1999 Australia's rail safety improvement compared favourably with that of other OECD countries and performance reached OECD median levels in the 1990s. Data for this…

To facilitate comparisons between rail safety in each of the jurisdictions in Australia, comparisons between rail safety in Australia and in other countries, and comparisons between the safety of the different modes of transport (air, water, road and rail), the ATSB has referred wherever possible to national and international standards. The Australian standard AS 4292, Railway safety management, includes an appendix titled 'Incident definition and recording requirements'. State rail safety regulators have also devised a national standard called 'Occurrence categories and definitions'. Both of…

Although most runway incursions do not result in accidents, the potentially catastrophic consequences of runway incursions place them high on the agendas of aviation safety agencies internationally. The majority of runway incursions in Australia have a low potential to result in an accident. Australia has never experienced a large scale accident due to a runway incursion but vigilance is required to maintain this safety record. Data described and analysed in this report were sourced from the ATSB's OASIS database. The data have been reviewed and analysed to better understand runway incursions…