Flight Safety

AVweb’s Flight Safety section offers in-depth coverage of aviation safety topics, including accident analyses, risk management strategies, regulatory updates, and pilot training insights. Designed for pilots, instructors, and aviation professionals, this section provides timely information to enhance situational awareness and promote best practices in flight operations.

Boeing 777 Consumed In Fire In Dubai; One Dead

One firefighter is dead and more than a dozen injured when an Emirates Boeing 777 burst into flames today after an emergency landing at Dubai’s airport. All 300 passengers and crew were able to evacuate safely, but flames consumed the airliner, Reuters reported. An estimated thirteen were taken to a hospital. A landing gear problem […]

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Balloon Crash: A Big Hole In FAA Oversight?

When Los Angeles Times reporter Nigel Duara was fishing for a third-day lead on the tragic balloon crash in Texas Monday, the graph practically wrote itself: “The pilot of a hot-air balloon that crashed into a Texas pasture had four convictions for drunken driving on his record, but was not required to submit to the […]

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NTSB Completes On-Site Balloon Investigation

NTSB investigators wrapped up their on-site investigation today of Saturday morning’s hot-air balloon crashin Texas, in which 16 people were killed. In a news briefing at 4 p.m. local time, NTSB member Robert Sumwalt said their preliminary investigation had not revealed any pre-existing failures or malfunctions with the balloon system. He also said investigators had […]

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NTSB: Balloon Likely Hit Power Lines

The NTSB said Sunday that the hot air balloon that crashed in Texas early Saturday killing 16 people likely hit power lines before the balloon’s basket crashed to the ground. Although witnesses reported hearing popping sounds and seeing a fireball, it still hasn’t been determined whether the fire occurred before or after the balloon appeared […]

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Mars Water Bomber Damaged In Landing, Flybys Cancelled

The Martin Mars water bomber, one of the main attractions at this week’s AirVenture show in Oshkosh, made a precautionary landing on Lake Winnebago Friday evening and was damaged. The incident forced the Canadian operator of the seaplane to cancel today’s demonstration flight at the afternoon airshow, according to a report in the Oshkosh Northwestern. […]

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Four Killed In California Medevac Crash

A twin-engine Piper PA-31 Cheyenne being flown for a medical transport mission crashed in Humboldt County, California, near the Oregon border, on Friday morning, killing all four on board. The pilot had reported smoke filling the cockpit at about 1 a.m., according to FAA spokesman Ian Gregor. The airplane had taken off about 30 minutes […]

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Hot Air Balloon Crash Kills 16 (Updated)

Witnesses in Texas say that a fiery balloon crash that killed 16 occupants Saturday may have been caused by contact with high-voltage power lines at the crash site. The balloon’s envelope was found nearly intact three quarters of a mile from the crash site and the gondola was completely charred nearby. The balloon crashed about […]

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Marine Pilot Killed In Jet Crash

The pilot was killed when an F/A-18C fighter jet crashed Thursday night during a training mission in southern California, the Marine Corps has reported. The crash occurred around 10:30 p.m. in the vicinity of the Marine Corps Air-Ground Combat Center near Twentynine Palms, about 140 miles east of Los Angeles. The pilot, whose name has […]

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EAA Young Eagles Reach 2 Million-Plus Flights

EAA’s 2 millionth Young Eagle, plus three others in the count around the milestone, received their memorable airplane rides at Oshkosh Thursday with prominent EAA pilots. Actor Harrison Ford, a former Young Eagles chairman, flew Jodie Gawthrop, 16, of Illinois in his de Havilland Beaver. She described the flight in an EAA interview as “amazing.” […]

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Huerta Stresses Safety At AirVenture

The FAA administrator comes to EAA AirVenture just about every summer, and as a rule the main thrust of the current officeholder’s speech is pretty predictable — whoever is in the job will talk about how great GA is and how much they support it, but how hard and slow it is to change any […]

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