Sir - The article "Hull-loss accident rate climbing" (Flight International, 22-28 November, P22) calls for a response.
It is correct to use the USA as a benchmark to trace the evolution of the frequency of this type of accident. The USA has been, and still is, a leader in aviation technology, but it is wrong to compare the USA alone with the rest of the world.
A more realistic approach would be to compare continental North America with the rest of the world, to offer a more balanced picture. Further fine-tuning would compare the USA, plus Central and South American nations, with Europe, plus Japan and South-East Asia. Some parts of Africa, Asia and the CIS would have to be considered separately.
As a tool to find ways to improve the situation, the Boeing study is inadequate. To state that the USA is ten times better than the rest of the world leads to the conclusion that countries such as France, Germany, Uzbekistan and Zaire, for example, desperately need to restructure their aviation activities.
I would not like to pass on such a message to French president Jacques Chirac.
Capt W MOMMAERTS
Tildonk, Belgium
Source: Flight International
