African skies safe but concerns remain - IATA report

African skies are safe, though concerns remain about the overall aviation operating environment, the IATA 2022 Airline Safety Performance has revealed.

The report showed a reduction in fatal accidents and fatality risk compared to 2021 and the five-year average (2018-2022).

The number of turboprop accidents declined in 2022 compared to 2021 but they accounted for four of the five fatal accidents last year with the loss of life to passengers and crew onboard.

Although sectors flown by turboprops represented just 10.6% of the total, turboprops were involved in 36% of all accidents, 80% of fatal accidents, and 16% of fatalities in 2022.

Six regions showed improvement or no deterioration, in the turboprop hull loss rate in 2022 when compared to the five-year average. “Accidents are rare in aviation. There were five fatal accidents among 32.2 million flights in 2022. That tells us that flying is among the safest activities in which a person can engage. But even though the risk of flying is exceptionally low, it is not risk-free. Careful analysis of the trends that are emerging even at these very high levels of safety is what will make flying even safer,” Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director-General, said.

The sub-Saharan Africa region, along with Latin America/Caribbean, however, saw an increase in the turboprop hull loss rate in 2022 when compared to the five-year average.

Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director-General, said: “Both sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America saw increases in turboprop accidents last year. Introduction and adherence to global standards (including IOSA) are key to reversing this trend. The priority for Africa continues to be implementation of the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) safety-related standards and recommended practices (SARPS).”

At year-end 2022, some 28 African countries (61%) had an Effective Implementation (EI) rate of ICAO SARPS of 60% or greater, unchanged from 2021. Increased attention is being placed to address the critical elements of the ICAO SARPS.

“This year’s report, for example, tells us that we need to make some special efforts on turboprop operations in Africa and Latin America. Safety is aviation’s highest priority, and our goal is to have every flight take off and land safely regardless of region or aircraft type,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.