Alcohol associated with fatal light aircraft accidents, United Kingdom-1964-1973.

A total of 86 fatal light aircraft accidents in the United Kingdom from January 1964 to December 1973 are reviewed, in which tissue alcohol determinations were undertaken on 102 pilots. Alcohol was detected in 34 cases varying from small amounts of 313 mg/100 ml. The difficulties of interpretation of post mortem tissue alcohol levels are discussed with particular reference to those cases with measured alcohols in excess of 20 mg/100 ml a level taken as possibly significant in context of accident causation. There was 12 pilots, involved in 10 of the 86 fatal accidents, considered as having ingested alcohol before flying, giving an incidence of 11.6% fatal light aircraft accidents with an alcohol involvement. Half of the pilot crashed within 18 min of takeoff, and half had less than 100 h flying experience. It is noted that five of the accidents occurred in 1973. Education of pilots to the hazards of alcohol and flying is the ultimate solution.     

Analysis of human factors in aircraft accidents.

This paper describes our current approach and accomplishments in the analysis of human factors aspects of aircraft accidents. Emphasis has been placed upon methods of analysis of Boards of Inquiry and human factors information storage and retrieval methods.     

Aviation medicine in the United Kingdom: early years, 1911-1918

This is the first of three brief papers that summarize the history of aviation medicine in the Royal Air Force. Just as the generals and politicians were slow to appreciate the potential of the airplane, so the medical establishment was slow in understanding that the flight environment involved medical and physiological challenges. This note outlines the development of research to support British military aviators up to the formation of the Royal Air Force in 1918.     

Cardiac injuries in aircraft occupants resulting from aircraft accidents.

The author reports that relatively frequent injuries to the thorax and to the heart are established in autopsies of aircraft fatalities. A review of 128 autopsy protocols of aircraft accident fatalities revealed 111 cases of severe contact injuries to the thorax and 98 cases of traumatic injuries to the pericardium and the heart. Accepting the fact that persons injured if traffic accidents display cardiac injuries in 25% of the cases, the number of traumatic heart lesions inflicted in persons in aircarft accidents is three times as high, a fact which may be attributed to the far higher speeds of the aircraft at the moment of impact with resultant forces of deceleration. Causes and mechanisms of the development of cardiac lesions as well as necessary recommendations for the improvement of the health protection of aircraft occupants are discussed.     

Factors in 171 navy diving decompression accidents occurring between 1960-1969.

Comparisons were made between the incidence of specific factors in U.S. Navy decompression accidents and the incidence of these factors in routine (nonexperimental) U.S. Navy operational dives. It was found that decompression accidents are disproportionately high among a) air dives less than 140 ft which have bottom times of 30 min or less and air dives greater than 140 ft which have bottom times of more than 15 min, b) Divers First Class, c) older divers, and d) dives which do not involve work or divers which require heavy work. Repetitive dives have a lower decompression accident rate than expected. Decompression accidents were not disproportionately high for any category of body build. These results indicate that the present U.S. Navy decompression tables are extremely safe (5 decompression accidents/10,000 dives), and do not appear to require modification. Future decompression research may be directed toward analyzing the relationship of work and aging to physiological processes involved in decompression. In addition, the present findings should be cross-validated using more recent accident and operational diving data.     

Human factors analysis and classification system applied to civil aircraft accidents in India

INTRODUCTION: The Human Factors Analysis and Classification System (HFACS) has gained wide acceptance as a tool to classify human factors in aircraft accidents and incidents. This study on application of HFACS to civil aircraft accident reports at Directorate General Civil of Aviation (DGCA), India, was conducted to ascertain the practicability of applying HFACS to existing investigation reports and to analyze the trends of human factor causes of civil aircraft accidents. METHOD: Accident investigation reports held at DGCA, New Delhi, for the period 1990--99 were scrutinized. In all, 83 accidents occurred during this period, of which 48 accident reports were evaluated in this study. RESULTS: One or more human factors contributed to 37 of the 48 (77.1%) accidents. The commonest unsafe act was 'skill based errors' followed by 'decision errors.' Violations of laid down rules were contributory in 16 cases (33.3%). 'Preconditions for unsafe acts' were seen in 23 of the 48 cases (47.9%). A fairly large number (52.1%) had 'organizational influences' contributing to the accident. DISCUSSION: These results are in consonance with larger studies of accidents in the U.S. Navy and general aviation. Such a high percentage of 'organizational influences' has not been reported in other studies. This is a healthy sign for Indian civil aviation, provided effective remedial action for the same is undertaken.     

Loss of cabin pressurization in U.S. Naval aircraft: 1969-90.

During the 22-year period from 1 January 1969 to 31 December 1990, there were 205 reported cases of loss of cabin pressure in US Naval aircraft; 21 were crew-initiated and 184 were deemed accidental. The ambient altitudes varied from 10,000 ft (3048 m) to 40,000 ft. (12192 m). The most common reason for crew-initiated decompression was to clear smoke and fumes from the cockpit/cabin (95%). The most common cause for accidental loss of cabin pressure was mechanical (73.37%), with aircraft structural damage accounting for the remaining 26.63%. Serious physiological problems included 1 pneumothorax, 11 cases of Type I decompression sickness, 23 cases of mild to moderate hypoxia with no loss of consciousness, 18 cases of hypoxia with loss of consciousness, and 3 lost aircraft with 4 fatalities due to incapacitation by hypoxia. In addition, 12 ejections were attributed to loss of cockpit pressure. Nine of the ejections were deliberate and three were accidental, caused by wind blast activation of the face curtain. Three aviators lost their lives following ejection and seven aircraft were lost. While the incidence of loss of cabin pressure in Naval aircraft appears low, it none-the-less presents a definite risk to the aircrew. Lectures on the loss of cabin/cockpit pressurization should continue during indoctrination and refresher physiology training.     

Analysis of fatal factors influencing accidents involving two-wheel electric vehicle drivers at intersections

With the development of society, the convenience offered by two-wheel electric vehicles has made them an ideal road-transportation option for daily short-distance travel. However, this also poses various road-safety concerns. This study aims to analyse the main factors causing fatal injuries at intersections for two-wheel electric vehicle drivers. This study uses 902 sets of data on two-wheel electric vehicle accidents that occurred in Shandong Province between 2014 and 2018 (obtained from the Shandong Tianhong Judicial Expertise Center database) to comprehensively analyse the nine factors that result in driver fatalities at road intersections. A dimensionality reduction of the factors via principal component analysis returned four main factors, namely the collision object, collision-object speed, running direction, and sight obstacles. A subsequent analysis of the main factors revealed that the most common collision object for two-wheel electric vehicle drivers is the automobile, with the most common speed during the collision being 50–60 km/h. Sight obstacles primarily include other vehicles as well as glaring lights. Two-wheel electric vehicles are most prone to accidents when turning left. This study comprehensively analyses the main factors that cause fatal injuries to two-wheel electric vehicle drivers at road intersections. Further investigations can be conducted to analyse the impact of the specific conditions of the two-wheel electric vehicle collisions on the mortality of drivers.     

Toxicological findings in fatal civil aviation accidents, fiscal years 1968-1974.

Toxicological findings in 1,345 fatal general aviation accidents from fiscal year 1968 through 1974 are summarized. Methods used in examination of specimens for alcohol, drugs, carbon monoxide, cyanide, and cholinesterase activity are described. Blood ethanol levels in excess of 0.050% were found in 117 of the 1,345 pilots (8.7%). Drugs were found in 16 cases (1.2%). These and other toxicological findings indicate that in more than 40% of the cases, information worthy of consideration in developing the human-factors history of an accident or the cause of death from survivable crashes was obtained.     

Civil defence in the United Kingdom

What must be avoided in the nuclear age is wishful thinking. Wishful thinking occurs in an atmosphere of maximum terror (as in Mutual Assured Destruction), and where there is little opportunity for reality testing (as in the East‐West communication barrier). In the small, densely populated island of Britain, the size of today's growing nuclear threat will create responses where delusional thinking can easily dominate. A belief in effective civil defence may induce a sense of false security which may in turn direct attention from the fundamental problem of East‐West mistrust.     

Factors affecting a fatal outcome in road accidents

The North Report mentioned the question of whether charges and/or sentencing should be modified by fatal outcome following offences involving bad driving. This note classifies factors relating to the accident, the casualty and medical care which may, often fortuitously, determine a fatal outcome. It is suggested that these should be borne in mind in deciding offences and sentencing.     

Craniocerebral injuries in traffic accidents with fatal outcomes

Research into crainiocerebral injury (CCI) characteristics of traffic accidents with fatal outcomes, as well as certain types of CCIs and defined categories of traffic participants, has been conducted. The research data were obtained from autopsy protocols at the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Serbia. Out of the 202 cases of individuals who had been fatally injured in traffic accidents, CCIs were diagnosed in 82.7% of them. The highest percentage of CCIs was established for front-seat passengers (95%), while for drivers it was 86.2%, pedestrians 78%, and 76% for rear-seat passengers. The domination of males among the deceased was also found, mostly as drivers (92%). The majority of individuals who experienced a CCI were in the age group of 21 to 30 years old, while pedestrians were commonly older than 60. In these cases, a high frequency of skull fractures was usually localized in different cranial regions (67.7%). In the majority of cases with CCIs (81.4%), these injuries contributed to an ultimate fatal outcome, mainly in pedestrians (93%). Fatal and non-fatal CCIs resulting from traffic accidents can result in significant socio-economic consequences for the individual and society as a whole that include specifically the ongoing costs and outcomes in cases from non-fatal injuries.     

Case-control study of risk factors for fatal and non-fatal injury in crashes of civil aircraft

BACKGROUND: There have been few studies of the risk factors for fatal injury in air crashes, and none of risk factors for all serious injury (fatal and non-fatal). OBJECTIVE: To identify the potentially modifiable risk factors for fatal and non-fatal injury in civil aircraft crashes in New Zealand. METHODS: We analyzed records from all reported civil aircraft crashes in New Zealand (1988-1994). Air crash data from the official databases were merged with nationwide injury records and information obtained from coroners' files. Pilots-in-command who were fatally injured were compared with pilots-in-command who were not fatally injured using 50 variables covering pilot, aircraft, environmental, and operational characteristics. A second analysis compared pilots-in-command who were seriously injured (either fatally or non-fatally) with those who were involved in a crash but not hospitalized with an injury. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were then conducted to estimate the odds associated with each of the factors identified by the above comparisons. RESULTS: The most significant risk factors for fatal and serious injury were aerobatic flight, post-crash fire, not having a certificate of airworthiness, and off-airport location. Environmental characteristics including terrain type, wind, rain, and elevation of the crash site were identified as risk factors, as was being under instruction. Flying a twin-engine aircraft was a risk factor for fatal injury, while piloting a microlight aircraft was a risk factor for all serious injury. CONCLUSION: Environmental and operational factors, rather than pilot or aircraft characteristics, are the key determinants of the injury outcome of civil aircraft crashes.