WORK-RELATED AVIATION FATALITIES IN ALASKA, 2004-2013
METHODS: National Transportation Safety Board investigation reports were used to identify fatal aviation crashes in Alaska during 2004-2013. The Alaska Occupational Injury Surveillance System was used to identify occupational fatalities in these crashes. Data were compared to determine characteristics and areas for improvement.
RESULTS: During 2004-2013, 1,028 civilian aviation crashes occurred in Alaska; 101 of these crashes were fatal, resulting in 208 deaths. Sixty workers died in 43 of these crashes. Pilots accounted for 42 (70%) of the workers, resulting in a fatality rate of 162 fatalities per 100,000 pilots. The average age of occupational pilots was 47 years, the average age of non-pilots was 42 years. The most common occupations for non-pilots were installation, maintenance and repair (7), personal care and service (3), and healthcare practitioners and technical occupations (2).
CONCLUSIONS: This review demonstrates that aircraft crashes continue to be a hazard for workers in Alaska. The number of work-related fatalities due to aircraft crashes decreased by 58% from 2004-2013 compared to 1990-1999. However working as a pilot continues to be a high-risk occupation; the annual pilot fatality rate for pilots working in Alaska is approximately 43 times the mortality rate for all U.S. workers. Efforts are still needed to reduce the number of fatal aircraft crashes and the number of work-related fatalities.