Al-Amn Magazine

AVIATION D espite several aviation disasters across the country in recent weeks and growing concerns about the safety of flying, an expert says air travelers have nothing to fear.  The United States experienced three fatal plane crashes in just eight days, beginning with the deadliest aviation accident in America in the last 24 years.  An Army Black Hawk helicopter collided midair with an American Airlines passenger plane near Washington, D.C., on January 29, killing all 67 passengers on both aircraft. Just days later, a medevac plane carrying a young girl, her mother and four crew members crashed near the Roosevelt Mall in Philadelphia, killing all those on the plane and one bystander on the ground on January 31. A commuter plane was then found wrecked off the coast of Alaska on February 7, with all 10 people on board deceased, after the flight traveling from Unalakleet to Nome disappeared the day prior. «As long as we put airplanes in the sky that have been built by and run by the hand of man, there are going to be mistakes made … but those mistakes are fewer and fewer and fewer,» Mike Boyd, an aviation consultant and the president of Boyd Group International, told Fox News Digital. «The public should be aware that the people in charge right now are trying to keep them safe. That›s the bottom line.» The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) lists the 10 most frequent cause factors for general aviation accidents involving the pilot: Inadequate preflight preparation and/or planning Failure to obtain and/or maintain flying speed Failure to maintain direction control Improper level off Failure to see and avoid objects or obstructions Mismanagement of fuel Improper in-flight decisions or planning Misjudgment of distance and speed Selection of unsuitable terrain Improper operation of flight controls «This list remains relatively stable and points out the need for continued refresher training to establish a higher level of flight proficiency for all pilots,» the FAA writes. Boyd said flyers «don›t need to look at 10 points» or «any of the data,» explaining that the recent aviation tragedies were a «situation where we›ve had a couple of human errors and systemic errors, and they›re fixed.» «The events that have happened do not indicate we have a major safety problem,» he added. «The issue in Washington, the commercial airplane was doing exactly what it should have done, and we had an air traffic controller that didn›t do the job. In Philadelphia … that was a private medical airplane … that›s not a safety issue as far as flying on commercial airplanes go.» A Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport tower supervisor allegedly let another air traffic controller leave work early on the night of the D.C. collision. The FAA calls for one controller to monitor planes while another monitors helicopters. Trave l ers have not h i ng to fear – yet No , do not worry abou t f l y i ng