Regardless of what statistic you choose to follow with regard to your chance of being involved in a plane crash, the bottom line is that planes do crash on a regularly basis. Whether they are small commuter planes, even smaller personal aircraft or large commercial jets, airplane crashes do continue to happen despite recent advancements in safety. So have these recent advancements in safety made a difference in aviation safety and what causes the majority of plane crashes?
The simple answer to the first question is that the recent advancements in safety and technology have certainly made a difference in the potential to make air travel safer. The fact remains, however, that the single biggest cause of aviation accidents in the United States remains pilot error. Statistics tell us that some type of pilot error is responsible for almost 50% of all aviation accidents. Of that 50%, pilot error that is related to mechanical problems accounts for less than 5% of the accidents while pilot error that is weather related accounts for about 20% of the accidents. That leaves a full 25% of all accidents that were caused by pilot error without contributing circumstances.
Mechanical failure accounts for the next highest percentage of aviation accidents with about 30% of the total. The weather is responsible for about 10% of the total with sabotage and other human error accounting for the remaining 10% or so of all aviation accidents. One thing that truly stands out when studying these statistics is that a full 80% of all aviation accidents are potentially due to either manufacturer or pilot error. Obviously, no one can control the weather and sabotage is always a risk on an airline, but mechanical failures and pilot errors are potentially preventable.
So what do these statistics mean for you if you have been injured in an aviation accident or lost a loved one in a plane crash? While each case is different, they mean that the chances are high that someone was negligent in your plane crash. If it does turn out that either the pilot, airliner or manufacturer were negligent and contributed to or causes the crash, then you may be entitled to compensation for any injuries you suffered or you may be entitled to file as a claimant in a wrongful death case if you have lost a loved one as a result of an aviation accident. The laws of negligence are very clear in that the negligent party must compensate the injured party. Proving negligence, on the other hand, may not be so simple. Unlike car accidents where there are typically a number of witnesses and extensive evidence, in a plane crash there may not be any surviving witnesses and evidence may be scarce. If you find yourself in such a situation, the best thing you can do is contact an experienced California aviation accident attorney. Your aviation accident attorney can evaluate your case and explain to you what legal options you may have and what the prospect is of winning your case.
If you would like a free detailed evaluation of your California aviation accident case, please contact California aviation accident attorney Emery Ledger of Ledger & Associates. His firm can be reached at 1-800-300-0001 or online at www.ledgerlaw.com.
