General aviation is flying more hours and getting safer on paper in the US, but the data tells a surprising story. The biggest accident bucket is landing, yet it rarely kills anyone. The real danger lives in a small set of patterns: loss of control, low‑level maneuvering, VFR into IMC, fuel mistakes, and mishandled engine failures. This brief looks at what the McSpadden / Nall numbers actually say, and where instructors and pilots should really focus their attention.
Source: AOPA Air Safety Institute, Richard G. McSpadden Report / Nall data (2008–2025).
Key point
General aviation is flying more and, in rate terms, getting safer. In 2023 there were 1,097 GA accidents and 186 fatals on 28.4 million hours, for rates of 3.86 total and 0.65 fatal accidents per 100,000 hours. But around 70% of non‑commercial fixed‑wing accidents are still pilot‑related.
Where accidents really happen
For non‑commercial fixed‑wing operations, the pattern is stable across recent years:
- Landing – the biggest bucket by far (hundreds of accidents a year), but rarely fatal. Loss of control on the ground and abnormal runway contact dominate.
- Takeoff and climb – over 200 accidents a year. Leading causes are loss of control in flight and engine powerplant failures.
- En route – around 150–160 accidents. Engine power failures are the main driver.
- Descent and approach – 100–150 accidents, with loss of control and “other” as leading causes and a meaningful share of fatals.
- Maneuvering – smaller in count but disproportionately lethal, driven by loss of control and stall/spin events.
- Weather – low in absolute numbers but highly lethal. VFR into IMC is the standout: roughly 10 accidents a year and almost all fatal.
- Fuel management – about 100 accidents a year, with starvation and exhaustion together making up the majority.
Mechanical vs human
- Mechanical issues account for roughly 15–20% of accidents. Loss of engine power (total and partial) leads.
- Partial power loss shows up as more dangerous than total engine failure, suggesting many pilots struggle to diagnose and adapt to “some power” situations.
- Overall, the hardware is usually better than the humans flying it.
Trend line
From 2018 through 2023:
- Total accidents move with flight activity, but accident rates trend gently downward.
- Fatal accident rates keep grinding lower even as hours increase.
- The shape of the problem barely changes: roughly 70% pilot‑related; landing events numerous but survivable; loss of control, maneuvering, VFR‑into‑IMC, fuel and engine issues driving a large share of deaths.
Implications for training and safety work
- Focus training and checkouts on the phases and scenarios that actually generate accidents: landings, takeoff and climb, en route engine failures, descent/approach stability, low‑level maneuvering, VFR into IMC, and fuel management.
- Use McSpadden/Nall data directly in syllabi and recurrent training, not just as background reading.
- Treat partial power loss, weather decision‑making, and pattern discipline as core competencies, not edge cases.