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Air transportation occurrences in 2019

Table of contents

The TSB gathers and uses transportation occurrence data during the course of its investigations to analyze safety deficiencies and identify risks in the Canadian air transportation system.

It should be noted that certain characteristics of the data constrain statistical analysis and identification of emerging trends. These include the small totals of accidents and incidents, the large variability in the data from year to year, and changes to regulations and definitions. The reader is cautioned to keep these limitations in mind when reading this summary to avoid drawing conclusions that cannot be supported by statistical analysis.

Throughout this document, there are instances where categories of occurrences sum to more than the total number of occurrences. For example, if a single occurrence involves an aeroplane and a glider, the occurrence count will increase by one in each aircraft category but the occurrence itself will be counted only once in the total of occurrences.

The 2019 data were collected according to the reporting requirements described in the Transportation Safety Board Regulations in force during that calendar year.

The statistics presented here reflect the TSB Aviation Safety Information System (ASIS) database at 05 March 2020. Since the occurrence data are constantly being updated in the live database, the statistics may change slightly over time.

Also, as many occurrences are limited to data gathering, information recorded on some occurrences may not have been verified.

Overview of accidents and fatalities

Accident counts

Air transportation occurrences are reportable to the TSB if they occur in Canada or if they involve Canadian-registered aircraft, and meet the criteria laid out in the TSB Regulations.

In 2019, a total of 226 air transportation accidents were reported to the TSB (Table 1 and Figure 1). This number is higher than the previous year’s total of 201 accidents but 12% fewer than the average of 258 reported in the prior 10 years 2009–2018. Most (209) of the accidents in 2019 took place in Canada and involved Canadian-registered aircraft. Ten accidents in Canada involved foreign-registered aircraft, and 8 accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft took place outside Canada. In general, the number of air transportation accidents has been decreasing in the last decade.

Figure 1. Air transportation accidents reported to the TSB, 2009 to 2019
 Air transportation accidents reported to the TSB, 2009 to 2019
Figure 1. Data table
Air transportation accidents reported to the TSB, 2009 to 2019
Year Reportable accidents
2009 298
2010 288
2011 257
2012 291
2013 276
2014 249
2015 251
2016 230
2017 240
2018 201
2019 226

There were 199 accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft (excluding ultralights) in 2019 (Table 2). This is above the 2018 count of 173 accidents, but still 11% below the average of 223 accidents in the preceding 10 years 2009–2018. If the 18 accidents involving ultralights are included in the count, there were 217 accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft in 2019.

Aircraft type

Of the 226 air transportation accidents reported to the TSB last year, 176 (78%) involved fixed-wing, powered aeroplanes (other than ultralights) (Table 1), 28 (12%) involved helicopters, 18 (8%) involved ultralights, and 5 accidents (2%) involved other types of aircraft. From 2009 to 2018, the proportion of accidents involving each of these 4 types of aircraft has remained fairly constant: aeroplanes have been involved in roughly 75% of reportable accidents each year, helicopters in about 12% of accidents, ultralights in about 10%, and other aircraft in about 3% of accidents each year.

Operator type

There were 83 accidents that involved commercially-operated aircraft in 2019 (Table 1). This is more than the 66 such accidents recorded in 2018, but still 6% below the average of 88 accidents recorded in the 10 years 2009–2018.

Commercially-operated Canadian-registered aeroplanes were involved in 66 accidents in 2019 (Table 2), and 7 of those involved operations under Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARs) Subpart 705, which certificates the operation of airliners. This is fewer than the 8 accidents involving Canadian-registered airliners in 2018, but still above the average of 5.5 per year recorded from 2009 to 2018. In 2019, the TSB conducted formal investigations into 4 of the 7 accidents in that year that involved airliners. Two investigations were detailed Class 3 investigations (a collision on the ground, and a runway side excursion), and 2 were Class 4 investigations that were limited in scope (a forced landing after engine failure, and an abnormal runway contact).

Figure 2. Number of accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft, by aircraft type and operation type, in 2019 compared with the 2009–2018 average
Number of accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft, by aircraft type and operation type, in 2019 compared with the 2009–2018 average
Figure 2. Data table
Number of accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft, by aircraft type and operation type
Canadian-registered aircraft by operator and aircraft type 2009 to 2018 average 2019
Other aircraft types  7 5
Helicopter  31 27
Non-commercial aeroplane 119 101
State operated aeroplane  2 1
Flight training unit aeroplane 20 23
Aerial work aeroplane  11 11
Air taxi aeroplane  21 21
Commuter aeroplane  4 4
Airliner aeroplane  6 7

Also in 2019, there were 4 accidents involving Canadian-registered commuter aeroplanes operating under CARs Subpart 704 (Table 2), as well as 26 accidents involving air taxi operations (CARs Subpart 703)—21 involving aeroplanes and 5 involving helicopters. These 26 air taxi accidents are up slightly from the 23 seen in 2018, but still fewer than the average of 33 accidents per year between 2009 and 2018. Flight training units operating under CARs Subpart 406 were involved in 25 accidents in 2019 comprising 23 aeroplanes, 1 helicopter, and 1 ultralight. This is slightly above the average of 22 accidents per year for the period 2009 to 2018.

Overall, 142 air transportation accidents involved non-commercial (i.e., private aircraft) operations (Table 1), compared to 134 in the preceding year. This is 13% below the annual average of 163 accidents from 2009 to 2018. Of the 142 total accidents in the non-commercial (private aircraft) operations category, 101 involved Canadian-registered aeroplanes (Table 2), and 4 of 101 were operating under CARs Subpart 604 with a Private Operator Registration Document (PORD).

Most operators of non-commercial (private) aircraft are classified as recreational operators. Recreational operators are responsible for a significant amount of flying activity in Canada and abroad, and are involved in many accidents each year. In 2019, 131 accidents involved recreational operators (Table 1). This figure is up 7 from 124 in the previous year, but still 17% below the average (156) for the period 2009–2018.

In addition to commercial and private operations, 1 state-operated aircraft was involved in an accident in 2019. The aircraft was operated by a provincial government to perform fire-fighting operations.

Province or territory

Ontario, with 52 reported accidents (all aircraft types, including ultralights), was the province with the largest number of reported accidents in 2019, as it was in the previous 2 years (Table 7). Ontario also averaged more accidents per year (65) in the 2009–2018 period than any other province or territory, with Quebec having the second-largest average accident count (56) for the same period. British Columbia and Alberta also have high average accident counts compared with the remaining provinces and territories.

Eight accidents that were reportable under TSB Regulations occurred outside Canada in 2019.

Figure 3. Air transportation accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft in 2019 compared with the 2009–2018 average, by province, territory, or region
Air transportation accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft in 2019 compared with the 2009–2018 average, by province, territory, or region
Figure 3. Data table
Air transportation accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft in 2019 compared with the 2009–2018 average, by province, territory, or region
Province 2009 to 2018 average 2019
B.C. 39 36
ALBERTA 27 27
SASKATCHEWAN 13 12
MANITOBA 15 12
ONTARIO 54 45
QUEBEC 47 41
ATLANTIC 10 11
NT/YT/NU  11 7
FOREIGN  7 8

The number of accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft by province or territory (Table 8) is shown in Figure 3. There were 45 accidents reported in Ontario involving Canadian-registered aircraft in 2019, which is 17% below the average number (54) for the years 2009 to 2018. New Brunswick (included in “Atlantic” in Figure 3) had more accidents (8) than was seen on average (3) over the previous 10 years.

Fatal accidents, fatalities, and serious injuries

The TSB recorded 70 fatalities in 33 fatal air transportation accidents in 2019 (tables 1 and 4). This is up considerably from 38 fatalities in the 23 fatal accidents in 2018, and is higher than the corresponding averages of 52 fatalities in 30 fatal accidents over the ten years 2009–2018. Of 33 fatal accidents in 2019, 27 involved fixed-wing, powered aeroplanes, 3 involved helicopters, 3 involved ultralight aircraft, and 1 involved a glider.

Four fatal accidents in 2019, accounting for 11 fatalities, involved foreign-registered aircraft operating in Canada (Table 1). One fatal accident resulting in 2 fatalities occurred outside Canada (in the United States) (Table 4).

Excluding ultralights, there were 26 fatal accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft in 2019, up from 21 in the preceding year and equal to the average in 2009–2018 (Table 2 and Figure 4). However, the number of fatalities in those accidents was 54, which is more than the 36 reported in 2018 and 17% above the average of 46 in  the preceding 10-year period.

Figure 4. Fatal accidents and fatalities involving Canadian-registered aircraft, excluding ultralights, 2009 to 2019
Fatal accidents and fatalities involving Canadian-registered aircraft, excluding ultralights, 2009 to 2019
Figure 4. Data table
Fatal accidents and fatalities involving Canadian-registered aircraft, excluding ultralights, 2009 to 2019
Year Fatalities  Fatal accidents 
2009 65 29
2010 66 32
2011 61 30
2012 54 33
2013 59 32
2014 15 10
2015 40 23
2016 34 24
2017 33 21
2018 36 21
2019 54 26

Twenty-five of the 70 aviation fatalities in 2019 involved commercial operations (Table 4): 21 of them under air taxi regulations (CARs 703), 3 under aerial work (CARs 702), and 1 in flight training operations (CARs 406). There were no fatalities involving airliner operations (CARs 705) or commuter operations (CARs 704) in 2019. The remaining 45 (of 70) fatalities in 2019 were linked to private operations, mostly involving recreational operators, with none involving an operator holding a PORD (CARs 604).

With regards to type of aircraft, 58 of 70 fatalities in 2019 resulted from accidents in fixed-wing powered aeroplanes (Table 4). Helicopter accidents resulted in 5 fatalities, as did ultralight accidents. There were also 2 fatalities in one glider accident. Of the 70 total fatalities, 34 were crew members and 36 were aircraft passengers. There were no fatalities among persons on the ground in 2019.

Overall, 31 persons received serious injuries in aircraft accidents in 2019 (Table 5),  slightly more than the 28 persons seriously injured in 2018, and just below the average of 34 in the period 2009–2018. Thirteen persons received serious injuries in accidents involving commercial operations in 2019: 1 in an airliner (CARs 705), 8 in air taxi operations (CARs 703), 2 related to aerial work (CARs 702), and 2 with flight-training units (CARs 406). Also in 2019, 18 persons incurred serious injuries in private operations, all of which were classified as recreational operations.

Accident rates

Accident rate as a key safety indicator

A key indicator of aviation safety is the aircraft accident rate, which is calculated as the number of accidents per hours flown or per number of movements (a movement can be a takeoff or a landing). Performing a trend analysis of accident rates for different types of operators can detect emerging safety issues associated with specific operator types and activities.

Activity data (e.g., flight hours) broken out by operator type is required to calculate the accident rates that enable trend analysis of specific operator types over time, or comparisons across operator types or geographical regions.

Until 2010, Transport Canada provided activity data broken out by operator type, and the TSB used these data to calculate and publish accident rates across operator types. In 2010, however, Transport Canada informed the TSB that it would no longer provide hours-flown activity data breakouts by operator type, because it had concerns regarding the accuracy of those data. The data were reported to Transport Canada by the commercial operators who were allowed to report all hours under the most restrictive subpart of the Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARs), even if they conducted operations under more than one subpart.

Reporting all hours for all subparts under a single total conflates and confounds airline and commuter activity, as well as the activity of many smaller aviation operators that may carry out operations under multiple subparts of the CARs (commuter, air taxi, and/or aerial work) and report their activity as a single total. Furthermore, the movement data as presently reported by Statistics Canada come from a survey that covers all aircraft movements at Canadian airports, with or without NAV CANADA air traffic control towers and flight service stations.

Because hours-flown and movement data are currently not categorized by CARs subpart when collected by the government, the rate data calculated is for the aviation sector as a whole; there is no differentiation between sectors (e.g., air-taxi operators versus airline operators) or between different types of aircraft (airplane, helicopter, floatplane). Therefore, the accident rate cannot be calculated for any single sector.

Without hours-flown and movement data that are categorized by CARs subpart and aircraft type, it will be more difficult for sector stakeholders to assess risks and determine if mitigation strategies being carried out to improve safety are actually working.

Therefore, in 2019 the Board recommended that

the Department of Transport require all commercial operators to collect and report hours flown and movement data for their aircraft by Canadian Aviation Regulations subpart and aircraft type, and that the Department of Transport publish those data.—TSB Recommendation A19-05

Accident rate for Canadian-registered aircraft, in Canada and abroad, per 100 000 hours flown

Overall accident rate

Transport Canada collects information about the number of hours flown by Canadian-registered aircraft. The 2019 overall air transportation accident rate of 3.7 per 100 000 hours flown (Table 3a) was calculated based on the 195 accidents in Canada and abroad involving Canadian-registered aeroplanes and helicopters (excluding ultralights and other aircraft types) and the estimated 5 201 000 hours flown by Canadian-registered aircraft.   This rate is above the 2018 rate of 3.3 accidents per 100 000 flight hours, but below the average rate of 4.9 accidents per 100 000 hours flown each year over the previous 10 years.

An encouraging observation is that the accident rate for Canadian-registered aircraft has fallen from 6.3 accidents per 100 000 hours flown in 2009 to 3.7 in 2019, a reduction of 41%. Kendall’s tau-b correlation and Sen’s estimate of slope were used to quantify the trend in Canadian-registered aircraft accident rate and fatal accident rate. Kendall's tau-b (τb) correlation coefficient is a nonparametric measure of the strength and direction of association that exists between two variables. Kendall’s τb was calculated on the 11-year series of accident rate values by year from 2009 to 2019. There was a strong, negative correlation that indicates a downward trend in accident rate per 100 000 hours flown over the period (τb = −0.8441, p = 0.0003). Sen’s estimate of slope, the amount of downward rate change per year, was −0.257 occurrences per 100 000 hours flown per year. A graphical illustration is presented in Figure 5.

Fatal accidents

Figure 5 also illustrates a trend line for fatal accidents. For the 26 fatal accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft in 2019, the fatal accident rate was 0.5 per 100 000 hours flown. That rate is up slightly from the 2018 rate of 0.4, and is below the 2009 to 2018 average of 0.6 fatal accidents per 100 000 hours flown. Although there is a downward trend to the series of fatal accident rates since 2009 (Kendall’s τb = −0.5829, p = 0.0185), the slope of the trend is quite small: Sen’s estimate of slope is −0.033 fatal accidents per 100 000 hours flown per year.

Figure 5. Canadian-registered aircraft accidents per 100 000 hours flown, 2009 to 2019
Canadian-registered aircraft accidents per 100 000 hours flown, 2009 to 2019
Figure 5. Data table
Canadian-registered aircraft accidents per 100 000 hours flown, 2009 to 2019
Year Canadian-registered aircraft accidents per 100 000 hours flown Sen's estimate of slope (-0.257) Fatal Canadian-registered aircraft accidents per 100 000 hours flown Sen's estimate of slope (-0.033)
2009 6.3 6.3 0.7 0.7
2010 6.0 6.0 0.8 0.7
2011 5.3 5.7 0.7 0.7
2012 5.3 5.5 0.7 0.6
2013 5.4 5.2 0.7 0.6
2014 4.8 5.0 0.2 0.6
2015 5.1 4.7 0.5 0.5
2016 4.3 4.5 0.5 0.5
2017 4.2 4.2 0.4 0.5
2018 3.3 3.9 0.4 0.4
2019 3.7 3.7 0.5 0.4
Fatalities

In 2019, 54 fatalities resulted from accidents involving Canadian-registered aeroplanes and helicopters (excluding ultralights), yielding a rate of 1.0 fatalities per 100 000 hours flown. This fatality rate is higher than the 2018 rate of 0.7, and equal to the average yearly rate of 1.0 from 2009 to 2018. Like the accident rate and fatal accident rate, the fatality rate per 100 000 hours flown has shown a downward trend since 2009 (Kendall’s τb = −0.5984, p = 0.0118). The rate of change (Sen’s estimate) is −0.100 fatalities per 100 000 hours flown per year.

Accident rate per 100 000 aircraft movements in Canada, for Canadian and foreign-registered aircraft

An alternate method for calculating the accident rate is to compare the accident count to the number of aircraft movements during a year (Table 3b). An aircraft movement is a takeoff, landing, or simulated approach by an aircraft, as defined by NAV CANADA. Statistics Canada collects movement information for all aircraft taking off from or landing at Canadian airports. There were 196 accidents in Canada in 2019 involving Canadian-registered and foreign aircraft (excluding ultralights). This is up from the previous year (167) and equivalent to the level seen in 2016 and 2017. The number of aircraft movements in Canada in 2019 was estimated to be 6 408 000, yielding a rate of 3.1 accidents per 100 000 movements, which is above the 2018 rate of 2.7 accidents per 100 000 movements, but still below the average rate of 3.5 over the previous 10 years. In 2019, 63 fatalities resulted from accidents involving aeroplanes and helicopters in Canada, yielding a rate of 1.0 fatalities per 100 000 movements of those aircraft types.

Dangerous goods released

Eight accidents in 2019 involved a release of dangerous goods. This is comparable to the numbers for the preceding 3 years, and slightly above the average of 4 per year over the previous 10 years.

Accident events and phases

For each reported accident, the TSB records 1 or more safety-significant events that occurred, and the phase of flight for each of these events. For example, if an airplane suffers engine power loss during takeoff (safety-significant event 1), and then returns to land and has a runway excursion during landing (safety-significant event 2), each of the two events and their phase of flight will be recorded for statistical purposes. Tables 11 through 14 show, by phase of flight, how many accidents occurred for each event type, from 2009 to 2019. Note that if a single accident involves more than one event within a phase of flight, that accident is only counted once in the phase total. Therefore, the total number of accidents for each event within a phase will not necessarily sum to the total number of accidents for a phase. For example, in the "takeoff" phase, if an accident involves both "loss of control" and "power loss" events, the accident is counted once in each event category within the phase, but only once in the overall phase total. As well, approximately 22% of aeroplane accidents and 30% of helicopter accidents from 2009 to 2019 involved events in more than a single phase of flight, so the number of accidents shown in the tables, and in figures 6 and 7, sum to more than the total number of accidents.

Figure 6. Aeroplane accidents and fatal accidents having events in specified phases of flight, 2009 to 2019
Aeroplane accidents and fatal accidents having events in  specified phases of flight, 2009 to 2019
Figure 6. Data table
Aeroplane accidents and fatal accidents having events in specified phases of flight, 2009 to 2019
Phase of flight All accidents  Fatal accidents 
Standing/Taxiing  193 8
Take-off  514 60
En route  328 78
Manoeuvering  115 34
Approach  278 54
Landing  1184 35
Post-impact  302 83

Figures 6 and 7 show the number of aeroplane and helicopter accidents by phase of flight and event category. Over the past 11 years (2009–2019), the distribution of aeroplane accidents (Figure 6) shows more accidents having events during the landing phase (56% of aeroplane accidents) or takeoff phase (24%) than in other phases of flight. Helicopter accidents (Figure 7) had events occurring more often during the landing (42%), manoeuvering (24%), and en route (20%) phases of flight. Note that for both aeroplanes and helicopters, although the landing phase is associated with the largest number of accidents, the en route, takeoff, and approach phases are associated with larger numbers of fatal accidents, and maneuvering with the largest proportion of fatal accidents.

Figure 7. Helicopter accidents and fatal accidents having events in specified phases of flight, 2009 to 2019
Helicopter accidents and fatal accidents having events in specified phases of flight, 2009 to 2019
Figure 7. Data table
Helicopter accidents and fatal accidents having events in specified phases of flight, 2009 to 2019
Phase of flight All accidents  Fatal accidents 
Standing/Taxiing  28 0
Take-off  62 5
En route  70 24
Manoeuvering  82 17
Approach  41 4
Landing  145 9
Post-impact  47 9

Overview of incidents

Incident counts

In 2019, 911 air transportation incidents were reported under the TSB Regulations (Table 9). This represents an increase of 51 reportable incidents (6%) from 860 in 2018, and is 17% above the average of 777 incidents per year between 2009 and 2018. The apparent increase in incidents over the past few years is partly explained by the introduction of new regulations that became effective July 1, 2014. Under those reporting requirements, aviation incidents to be reported to the TSB were expanded to include those involving aircraft with a maximum certificated takeoff weight greater than 2250 kg (formerly 5700 kg) and aircraft being operated under an air operator certificate issued under CARs Part VII—Commercial Air Services.

Overall, reported incidents gradually decreased in number from 2009 until about 2013, but over the most recent five years that number has increased back to approximately the same level as in 2008. The same general pattern (a few years of decreasing counts, followed by several years of increase) is evident since 2009 in the two most common incident categories: declared emergency, which accounted for 40% of reported incidents in 2019, and risk of collision/loss of separation, which made up 15% of reported incidents in 2019 (Figure 8). Engine failures made up 11% of incidents, while smoke/fire incidents were 10% of all incidents in 2019. Crew were reported to have been unable to perform their duties 87 times, or in 10% of all reportable incidents in the year. This category includes both flight crew and cabin crew. While the number of reported incidents in this category has been increasing in recent years, part of the increase may be tied to an improved reporting culture in the airline industry.

Figure 8. Reportable incidents by type, 2019
Reportable incidents by type, 2019
Figure 8. Data table
Reportable incidents by type, 2019
Reportable incident type Number  Percentage 
Declared emergency  365 40%
Risk of collision/Loss of separation  135 15%
Engine failure  103 11%
Smoke/Fire  91 10%
Collision  31 3%
Other incident type  186 21%

The majority of air transportation incidents in 2019 (651) occurred in Canada and involved Canadian-registered aircraft (Table 1). However, 181 incidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft occurred outside Canada in 2019, a number that has increased sharply since 2015 to a peak of 181 in 2017 and again in 2019, and contrasts with an average of 85 per year in the previous 10 years. Declared emergency and risk of collision/loss of separation were the two most common incident types involving Canadian-registered aircraft outside of Canada. Both of these incident types, while not showing a monotonic trend over the 11-year period of this report, have increased in frequency in a statistically significant manner over the past 5 years. The increase in reportable incidents generally is at least partially linked to improvements in reporting culture in the airline industry, and the adoption of safety management systems (SMS) by many smaller commercial operators, in addition to all of the major Canadian airlines, and the increased use of electronic flight bags and portable devices, both of which make it easier for pilots to report incidents.  

In part due to reporting requirements laid out in the TSB Regulations, commercial operations were the source of 95% of the incidents reported to the TSB in 2019 (Table 9). Two-thirds of these involved Canadian-registered airliners operating under CARs Subpart 705. There were 569 incidents reported in 2019 involving Canadian-registered airliners, down 45 from a peak of 614 in 2017 but still 18% above the average of 484 incidents per year 2009–2018.

Foreign air operators (CARs 701) were involved in 85 incidents in 2019, or about 10% of commercial incidents. This is down by half from the 170 incidents reported in 2010.

Data tables

Table 1. Reported air transportation occurrences, 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Number of reportable accidents 298 288 257 291 276 249 251 230 240 201 226
Accidents in Canada involving Canadian-registered aircraft 272 273 241 267 262 238 232 214 222 180 209
Accidents outside Canada involving Canadian-registered aircraft 11 1 6 8 4 4 10 8 11 11 8
Accidents in Canada involving foreign-registered aircraft 15 14 10 17 10 7 9 8 7 11 10
Number of accidents by operator type1 298 288 257 291 276 249 251 230 240 201 226
Commercial 115 109 99 92 84 82 74 63 97 66 83
Airliner (CAR 705) 2 6 4 5 7 4 9 1 9 8 7
Commuter (CAR 704) 6 7 6 5 3 2 3 3 5 1 4
Air taxi (CAR 703) 43 45 38 33 33 34 23 26 28 23 26
Aerial work (CAR 702) 21 29 27 26 21 17 18 16 18 17 21
Foreign air operator (CAR 701) 1 1 2 2 2 0 0 0 4 3 1
Flight training units (CAR 406) 37 19 19 19 17 25 20 17 32 13 25
Other commercial 5 2 3 3 1 1 1 1 2 1 0
Private 177 165 149 185 179 159 172 164 142 134 142
Private operators (CAR 604) 4 2 5 3 4 3 0 5 1 5 4
Recreational 173 162 142 181 175 156 165 152 134 124 131
Other private 0 1 3 1 0 0 7 8 7 7 7
State 3 5 2 3 6 4 1 0 0 2 1
Other/Unknown 6 10 8 12 9 5 5 3 2 0 0
Number of accidents by aircraft type1 298 288 257 291 276 249 251 230 240 201 226
Aeroplane 224 220 201 205 212 176 197 174 178 153 176
Helicopter 33 31 36 41 27 34 33 28 27 26 28
Ultralight 35 30 17 36 23 32 17 22 25 18 18
Other2 7 7 3 9 15 8 7 6 10 4 5
Number of aircraft involved in accidents1,3 304 290 261 296 280 253 259 234 247 207 229
Aeroplanes 229 222 204 209 215 179 202 178 184 159 178
Helicopters 33 31 36 42 27 34 33 28 27 26 28
Ultralights 35 30 17 36 23 32 17 22 25 18 18
Other2 7 7 4 9 15 8 7 6 11 4 5
Number of fatal accidents by aircraft type1 35 37 35 42 38 14 29 29 22 23 33
Aeroplane 22 29 23 25 25 12 20 22 18 17 27
Helicopter 8 3 8 7 6 0 5 2 2 4 3
Ultralight 4 3 3 8 4 2 4 4 1 2 3
Other2 1 2 1 2 4 0 0 1 1 0 1
Reportable accident fatalities 72 72 66 63 65 21 47 45 34 38 70
Reportable accident serious injuries 45 35 49 48 22 35 31 18 33 28 31
Accidents in Canada involving foreign-registered aircraft 15 14 10 17 10 7 9 8 7 11 10
Fatal accidents 2 2 2 1 2 2 3 1 0 0 4
Fatalities 2 2 2 1 2 4 4 7 0 0 11
Serious Injuries 3 1 1 4 0 1 0 0 0 4 1
Occurrences with a dangerous good release 3 1 0 1 4 4 6 7 8 7 8
Number of reportable incidents4 789 814 673 645 689 741 789 833 939 860 911
Incidents in Canada involving Canadian-registered aircraft 593 587 519 482 541 599 653 620 685 608 651
Incidents outside Canada involving Canadian-registered aircraft 64 78 54 48 38 55 58 117 181 161 181
Incidents in Canada involving foreign-registered aircraft 155 188 126 138 129 102 106 117 106 115 112
Number of reportable incidents by category4 789 814 673 645 689 741 789 833 939 860 911
Risk of collision / Loss of separation 153 206 120 102 115 94 111 139 172 141 135
Declared emergency 313 310 275 266 294 313 333 311 348 340 365
Engine failure 107 87 95 92 83 104 110 110 98 91 103
Smoke / Fire 97 80 88 71 67 89 87 85 100 99 91
Collision 10 5 7 5 15 16 8 18 24 26 31
Other 109 126 88 109 115 125 140 170 197 163 186

Data extracted 5 March 2020

  1. Breakdowns may not add up to totals. For example, when an occurrence involves an airplane and a helicopter, the occurrence is counted in each type, but only once in the total.
  2. Includes balloons, gyroplanes, gliders, airships, hang gliders, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and similar aircraft types.
  3. "Number of aircraft involved in accidents" are aircraft counts, all other data are accident counts.
  4. New TSB regulations came into effect on 1 July 2014. Under new reporting requirements aviation incidents include: a) aircraft having a maximum certificated take-off weight greater than 2 250 kg (formerly 5 700 kg); b) aircraft being operated under an air operator certificate issued under CARs Part VII.
Table 2. Occurrences involving Canadian-registered aircraft, 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Number of accidents by aircraft and operator type1,2 250 244 230 239 243 212 227 200 208 173 199
Aeroplane accidents 211 209 192 191 204 170 190 167 171 143 168
Commercial 89 77 71 62 58 55 51 42 71 46 66
Airliner (CAR 705) 2 6 4 5 7 4 9 1 9 8 7
Commuter (CAR 704) 5 6 4 5 3 1 3 3 5 1 4
Air taxi (CAR 703) 35 29 27 19 19 19 12 16 18 18 21
Aerial work (CAR 702) 11 18 14 14 12 8 10 7 12 6 11
Flight training units (CAR 406) 32 16 19 18 16 23 16 16 27 12 23
Other commercial 4 2 3 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 0
Private 121 122 113 122 139 111 138 122 101 96 101
Private operators (CAR 604) 2 2 2 0 3 1 0 5 1 5 4
Recreational 119 119 110 121 136 110 132 114 97 90 94
Other private 0 1 2 1 0 0 6 4 3 2 3
State 1 3 2 1 2 3 1 0 0 2 1
Other/Unknown 3 8 6 6 7 2 1 3 0 0 0
Helicopter accidents 32 29 35 41 27 34 32 27 27 26 27
Commercial 22 27 26 28 22 26 23 18 22 17 16
Private 10 2 9 10 4 7 9 9 5 9 11
State 0 0 0 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Other/Unknown 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other aircraft accidents3 7 6 3 7 13 8 7 6 10 4 5
Number of fatal accidents by aircraft and operator type1,2 29 32 30 33 32 10 23 24 21 21 26
Aeroplane accidents 21 28 21 25 24 10 18 21 18 17 23
Commercial 7 12 11 6 8 2 6 3 7 4 8
Airliner (CAR 705) 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Commuter (CAR 704) 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Air taxi (CAR 703) 6 7 6 3 5 1 3 1 1 2 6
Aerial work (CAR 702) 0 4 2 2 1 1 2 1 2 2 1
Flight training units (CAR 406) 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 1 3 0 1
Other commercial 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Private 13 15 10 17 14 8 13 18 11 13 15
Private operators (CAR 604) 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0
Recreational 13 15 10 17 13 8 13 16 10 13 15
Other private 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0
State 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other/Unknown 1 1 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
Helicopter accidents 7 3 8 7 6 0 5 2 2 4 3
Commercial 5 3 6 5 6 0 4 1 2 1 1
Private 2 0 2 1 0 0 1 1 0 3 2
State 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other/Unknown 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other aircraft accidents3 1 1 1 1 3 0 0 1 1 0 1
Accident fatalities2 65 66 61 54 59 15 40 34 33 36 54
Accident serious injuries2 34 30 43 38 19 28 28 17 27 21 26
Number of incidents by category2,4 657 665 573 530 579 654 711 737 866 769 832
Risk of collision/Loss of separation 137 179 106 92 105 84 101 127 159 134 126
Declared emergency 237 238 224 200 231 277 290 263 316 298 317
Engine failure 94 67 87 77 70 94 102 102 88 79 96
Smoke/Fire 84 69 67 59 55 76 79 75 95 85 83
Collision 8 4 7 4 14 15 7 16 23 21 27
Other 97 108 82 98 104 108 132 154 185 152 183
Number of accidents involving ultralight aircraft 34 30 17 36 23 31 16 22 25 18 18
Fatal accidents 4 3 3 8 4 2 3 4 1 2 3
Fatalities 5 4 3 8 4 2 3 4 1 2 5
Serious injuries 8 4 5 6 3 6 3 1 6 3 4

Data extracted 5 March 2020

  1. Breakdowns may not add up to totals. For example, when an occurrence involves an airplane and a helicopter, the occurrence is counted in each type, but only once in the total.
  2. Excludes ultralight aircraft
  3. Includes balloons, gyroplanes, gliders, airships, hang gliders, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and similar aircraft types.
  4. New TSB regulations came into effect on 1 July 2014. Under new reporting requirements aviation incidents include: a) aircraft having a maximum certificated take-off weight greater than 2 250 kg (formerly 5 700 kg); b) aircraft being operated under an air operator certificate issued under CARs Part VII.
Table 3a. Rate of accidents per 100,000 hours flown by Canadian-registered aircraft in Canada and abroad, 2009 to 2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Accidents 243 238 227 232 231 204 222 194 198 169 195
Fatal accidents 28 31 29 32 30 10 23 23 20 21 26
Fatalities 64 65 59 53 57 15 40 33 32 36 54
Hours flown2 (thousands) 3,871 3,992 4,284 4,393 4,294 4,271 4,334 4,473 4,721 5,050 5,201
Accidents per 100,000 hours 6.3 6.0 5.3 5.3 5.4 4.8 5.1 4.3 4.2 3.3 3.7
Fatal accidents per 100,000 hours 0.7 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.2 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.5
Fatalities per 100,000 hours 1.7 1.6 1.4 1.2 1.3 0.4 0.9 0.7 0.7 0.7 1.0

Data extracted 5 March 2020

  1. Canadian-registered aircraft, excluding ultralights, balloons, gyroplanes, gliders, airships, hang gliders and similar aircraft types.
  2. Source: Transport Canada (2016 to 2019 hours flown are estimated).
Table 3b. Rate of accidents per 100 000 aircraft movements by Canadian- and foreign-registered1 aircraft in Canada, 2009 to 2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Accidents 247 250 230 238 235 206 220 196 195 167 196
Fatal accidents 29 32 30 31 28 11 21 23 18 17 29
Fatalities 65 66 60 52 52 17 39 37 30 26 63
Aircraft movements2 (thousands) 6,443 6,327 6,179 6,157 6,024 6,010 6,016 6,023 6,136 6,296 6,408
Accidents per 100,000 aircraft movements 3.8 4.0 3.7 3.9 3.9 3.4 3.7 3.3 3.2 2.7 3.1
Fatal accidents per 100,000 aircraft movements 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.5
Fatalities per 100,000 aircraft movements 1.0 1.0 1.0 0.8 0.9 0.3 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.4 1.0

Data extracted 5 March 2020

  1. Excluding ultralights, balloons, gyroplanes, gliders, airships, hang gliders and similar aircraft types.
  2. Source: Statistics Canada (2019 movements are estimated).
Table 4. Aircraft accident fatalities, 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Fatalities 72 72 66 63 65 21 47 45 34 38 70
Fatalities in Canada involving Canadian-registered aircraft 68 70 63 61 57 15 39 35 32 28 57
Fatalities outside Canada involving Canadian-registered aircraft 2 0 1 1 6 2 4 3 2 10 2
Fatalities in Canada involving foreign-registered aircraft 2 2 2 1 2 4 4 7 0 0 11
Fatalities by operator type 72 72 66 63 65 21 47 45 34 38 70
Commercial 40 36 40 18 29 4 20 6 15 9 25
Airliner (CAR 705) 0 0 12 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Commuter (CAR 704) 17 1 2 1 5 0 0 0 0 0 0
Air taxi (CAR 703) 19 28 16 12 19 2 12 1 1 5 21
Aerial work (CAR 702) 1 7 8 3 4 2 6 2 7 4 3
Foreign air operator (CAR 701) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Flight training units (CAR 406) 3 0 2 1 1 0 2 3 5 0 1
Other commercial 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Private 31 32 25 37 33 17 28 39 19 29 45
Private operators (CAR 604) 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 4 0 1 0
Recreational 31 32 23 37 32 17 28 27 17 29 42
Other private 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 2 0 3
State 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other/Unknown 1 4 3 7 3 0 1 0 0 0 0
Crew fatalities by operator type 35 40 37 40 44 15 29 25 26 20 34
Commercial 12 17 20 11 21 3 10 3 11 3 10
Airliner (CAR 705) 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Commuter (CAR 704) 2 1 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
Air taxi (CAR 703) 7 11 7 7 14 1 4 1 1 0 8
Aerial work (CAR 702) 1 5 5 2 4 2 4 1 4 3 1
Foreign air operator (CAR 701) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Flight training units (CAR 406) 2 0 2 1 1 0 2 1 5 0 1
Other commercial 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Private 22 22 16 25 21 12 20 22 15 17 24
Private operators (CAR 604) 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 0
Recreational 22 22 14 25 20 12 20 18 14 17 21
Other private 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 1 0 3
State 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other/Unknown 1 1 3 3 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
Passenger fatalities by operator type 37 31 29 22 20 6 18 20 8 18 36
Commercial 28 18 20 6 8 1 10 3 4 6 15
Airliner (CAR 705) 0 0 8 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Commuter (CAR 704) 15 0 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0
Air taxi (CAR 703) 12 16 9 5 5 1 8 0 0 5 13
Aerial work (CAR 702) 0 2 3 0 0 0 2 1 3 1 2
Foreign air operator (CAR 701) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Flight training units (CAR 406) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0
Other commercial 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Private 9 10 9 12 11 5 8 17 4 12 21
Private operators (CAR 604) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0
Recreational 9 10 9 12 11 5 8 9 3 12 21
Other private 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 1 0 0
State 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other/Unknown 0 3 0 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ground fatalities 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Fatalities by aircraft type 72 72 66 63 65 21 47 45 34 38 70
Aeroplane 39 59 46 44 46 19 35 37 27 30 58
Helicopter 27 7 15 9 12 0 8 3 5 6 5
Ultralight 5 4 3 8 4 2 4 4 1 2 5
Other aircraft type 1 2 2 2 7 0 0 1 1 0 2

Data extracted 5 March 2020

Table 5. Aircraft accident serious injuries, 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Serious injuries 45 35 49 48 22 35 31 18 33 28 31
Serious injuries in Canada involving Canadian-registered aircraft 41 34 46 39 22 34 28 17 31 23 27
Serious injuries outside Canada involving Canadian-registered Aircraft 1 0 2 5 0 0 3 1 2 1 3
Serious injuries in Canada involving foreign-registered aircraft 3 1 1 4 0 1 0 0 0 4 1
Serious injuries by operator type 45 35 49 48 22 35 31 18 33 28 31
Commercial 14 17 31 22 11 10 15 8 13 17 13
Airliner (CAR 705) 1 1 10 1 0 0 3 2 8 4 1
Commuter (CAR 704) 1 4 7 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
Air taxi (CAR 703) 6 6 9 15 6 5 8 4 0 9 8
Aerial work (CAR 702) 3 5 5 1 3 3 3 2 2 2 2
Foreign air operator (CAR 701) 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Flight training units (CAR 406) 3 1 0 0 0 2 1 0 2 1 2
Other commercial 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Private 29 16 18 26 10 23 16 10 20 11 18
Private operators (CAR 604) 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Recreational 26 15 18 26 10 23 14 9 19 7 18
Other private 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 1 1 3 0
State 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other/Unknown 0 1 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0
Crew serious injuries by operator type 26 22 18 24 13 23 17 8 22 19 16
Commercial 8 8 6 6 4 5 6 3 8 10 2
Airliner (CAR 705) 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 3 3 0
Commuter (CAR 704) 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Air taxi (CAR 703) 2 2 2 1 2 2 2 2 0 3 0
Aerial work (CAR 702) 3 4 4 1 2 1 3 1 2 2 1
Foreign air operator (CAR 701) 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Flight training units (CAR 406) 3 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 1 1
Other commercial 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Private 17 12 12 18 8 17 11 5 14 9 14
Private operators (CAR 604) 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Recreational 15 11 12 18 8 17 9 5 14 6 14
Other private 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 0
State 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other/Unknown 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Passenger serious injuries by operator type 19 12 30 23 8 11 14 8 11 9 13
Commercial 6 9 24 15 6 5 9 4 5 7 9
Airliner (CAR 705) 1 1 10 0 0 0 2 2 5 1 0
Commuter (CAR 704) 1 3 7 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
Air taxi (CAR 703) 4 4 7 14 4 3 6 2 0 6 7
Aerial work (CAR 702) 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1
Foreign air operator (CAR 701) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Flight training units (CAR 406) 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1
Other commercial 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Private 12 3 6 8 2 5 5 4 6 2 4
Private operators (CAR 604) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Recreational 11 3 6 8 2 5 5 4 5 1 4
Other private 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
State 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other/Unknown 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Ground serious injuries 0 1 1 1 1 1 0 2 0 0 2
Serious injuries by aircraft type 45 35 49 48 22 35 31 18 33 28 31
Aeroplane 24 28 36 31 13 21 23 10 23 23 26
Helicopter 11 2 8 7 6 6 5 6 3 2 1
Ultralight 8 4 5 6 3 7 3 1 6 3 4
Other aircraft type 2 1 0 4 0 1 0 1 1 0 0

Data extracted 5 March 2020

Table 6. Accidents involving Canadian-registered aeroplanes and helicopters by operation type1, 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Aeroplane accidents by operation type2 211 209 192 191 204 170 190 167 171 143 168
Training 43 28 28 27 24 27 16 20 31 14 27
Pleasure/Travel 109 108 102 109 127 96 125 112 92 83 83
Business 4 6 7 4 2 9 1 3 1 7 5
Forest fire management 3 2 1 2 3 2 2 1 0 1 2
Test/Demonstration/Ferry 0 6 4 4 4 5 2 2 4 1 3
Aerial application 4 10 4 3 7 4 5 6 6 5 6
Inspection 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 0
Air transport 35 37 35 28 26 22 22 16 27 26 29
Air ambulance 5 2 1 1 0 1 0 3 1 1 1
Sightseeing 2 1 2 6 1 1 1 0 1 1 2
Other/Unknown 8 9 10 8 11 4 16 5 8 6 10
Fatal aeroplane accidents by operation type2 21 28 21 25 24 10 18 21 18 17 23
Training 1 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 3 0 1
Pleasure/Travel 13 15 10 16 11 7 12 15 9 12 12
Business 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 1
Forest fire management 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
Test/Demonstration/Ferry 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1
Aerial application 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 1 1 0
Inspection 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Air transport 5 7 8 4 5 1 2 1 2 2 6
Air ambulance 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Sightseeing 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
Other/Unknown 0 2 1 3 3 0 2 0 3 2 2
Helicopter accidents by operation type2 32 29 35 41 27 34 32 27 27 26 27
Training 5 0 2 1 1 2 5 1 7 1 2
Pleasure/Travel 5 2 9 8 2 7 8 9 4 6 8
Business 3 0 0 3 1 0 1 0 0 2 2
Forest fire management 4 1 2 1 3 0 2 0 2 2 1
Test/Demonstration/Ferry 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0
Aerial application 0 3 1 5 0 1 2 1 3 1 3
Inspection 0 1 2 2 2 3 0 1 0 1 0
Air transport 10 15 13 9 8 18 10 7 3 3 9
Air ambulance 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 0
Sightseeing 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0
Other/Unknown 4 6 5 10 7 2 4 8 6 8 2
Fatal helicopter accidents by operation type2 7 3 8 7 6 0 5 2 2 4 3
Training 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Pleasure/Travel 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 2
Business 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
Forest fire management 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Test/Demonstration/Ferry 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Aerial application 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
Inspection 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Air transport 3 2 1 1 3 0 3 0 0 0 1
Air ambulance 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Sightseeing 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other/Unknown 0 0 1 3 1 0 0 1 1 1 0

Data extracted 5 March 2020

  1. Canadian-registered aircraft, excluding ultralights, balloons, gyroplanes, gliders, airships, hang gliders and similar aircraft types.
  2. Breakdowns may not add up to totals. For example, when an occurrence involves a business aeroplane and a training aeroplane, the occurrence is counted in each type, but only once in the total.
Table 7. Aircraft accidents by province/territory, 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Accidents by province/territory 298 288 257 291 276 249 251 230 240 201 226
Newfoundland and Labrador 3 3 3 5 3 5 6 5 4 4 3
Prince Edward Island 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0
Nova Scotia 3 7 5 5 5 3 6 2 3 2 1
New Brunswick 2 5 3 3 2 6 2 5 7 1 8
Quebec 68 65 58 71 66 69 51 34 44 31 50
Ontario 74 71 63 67 72 67 74 50 62 53 52
Manitoba 19 27 17 18 13 12 14 17 10 7 17
Saskatchewan 14 18 18 9 19 12 13 10 13 13 12
Alberta 31 25 22 35 29 33 23 38 35 32 29
British Columbia 59 47 43 54 51 30 42 53 39 36 38
Yukon 4 3 8 8 4 4 6 2 4 4 3
Northwest Territories 6 9 6 5 3 3 2 3 2 5 4
Nunavut 3 7 4 3 4 1 2 3 3 1 1
Other airspace under Canadian air traffic control 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0
Outside Canada 11 1 6 8 4 4 10 8 11 11 8
Fatal accidents by province/territory 35 37 35 42 38 14 29 29 22 23 33
Newfoundland and Labrador 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2
Prince Edward Island 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Nova Scotia 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0
New Brunswick 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1
Quebec 10 10 5 10 5 2 7 7 4 2 9
Ontario 6 9 6 10 9 5 6 5 4 6 6
Manitoba 0 1 1 3 2 0 1 1 3 0 1
Saskatchewan 2 0 3 1 2 1 2 2 2 1 0
Alberta 1 2 4 6 4 1 3 4 3 5 5
British Columbia 8 7 10 9 10 2 4 8 3 4 5
Yukon 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 2
Northwest Territories 1 3 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1
Nunavut 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other airspace under Canadian air traffic control 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Outside Canada 2 0 1 1 3 1 4 1 2 4 1
Fatalities by province/territory 72 72 66 63 65 21 47 45 34 38 70
Newfoundland and Labrador 18 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 8
Prince Edward Island 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Nova Scotia 0 2 1 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0
New Brunswick 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 2 0 0 1
Quebec 16 28 9 11 5 2 16 15 6 4 14
Ontario 12 14 9 19 19 8 10 5 9 8 16
Manitoba 0 1 1 4 5 0 1 2 4 0 3
Saskatchewan 4 0 7 5 3 2 3 2 3 1 0
Alberta 1 4 5 6 5 1 4 4 5 6 8
British Columbia 14 15 16 15 17 3 7 12 4 6 12
Yukon 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 4
Northwest Territories 2 3 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 3 2
Nunavut 1 1 12 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other airspace under Canadian air traffic control 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0
Outside Canada 2 0 1 1 6 2 4 3 2 10 2

Data extracted 5 March 2020

Table 8. Accidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft by province/territory (excluding ultralights), 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Accidents by province/territory 250 244 230 239 243 212 227 200 208 173 199
Newfoundland and Labrador 3 3 3 5 3 4 6 4 3 2 2
Prince Edward Island 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Nova Scotia 1 7 3 3 5 2 5 2 2 1 1
New Brunswick 2 4 3 3 2 6 2 5 5 1 8
Quebec 60 52 52 52 57 57 44 28 39 28 41
Ontario 61 55 56 54 59 53 66 43 51 44 45
Manitoba 19 25 16 15 13 11 13 17 10 7 12
Saskatchewan 12 18 17 8 18 10 12 10 12 13 12
Alberta 28 24 18 30 27 31 21 36 30 27 27
British Columbia 44 38 39 46 44 27 39 43 35 30 36
Yukon 2 3 7 7 4 4 6 1 4 2 2
Northwest Territories 5 8 6 5 3 2 2 3 2 5 4
Nunavut 2 6 3 3 3 1 1 2 3 1 1
Other airspace under Canadian air traffic control 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0
Outside Canada 10 1 6 8 4 4 10 6 11 11 8
Fatal accidents by province/territory 29 32 30 33 32 10 23 24 21 21 26
Newfoundland and Labrador 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1
Prince Edward Island 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Nova Scotia 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
New Brunswick 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1
Quebec 8 9 5 4 3 1 6 5 4 2 5
Ontario 5 8 4 9 6 3 5 3 4 5 5
Manitoba 0 1 1 3 2 0 0 1 3 0 1
Saskatchewan 1 0 3 1 2 1 2 2 2 1 0
Alberta 1 2 3 5 4 1 3 4 3 4 5
British Columbia 8 5 9 8 9 2 2 7 2 4 5
Yukon 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 1
Northwest Territories 1 2 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1
Nunavut 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other airspace under Canadian air traffic control 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Outside Canada 1 0 1 1 3 1 4 1 2 4 1
Fatalities by province/territory 65 66 61 54 59 15 40 34 33 36 54
Newfoundland and Labrador 18 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 7
Prince Edward Island 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Nova Scotia 0 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
New Brunswick 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 2 0 0 1
Quebec 14 27 9 5 3 1 15 7 6 4 8
Ontario 11 12 7 18 16 4 9 3 9 7 9
Manitoba 0 1 1 4 5 0 0 2 4 0 3
Saskatchewan 2 0 7 5 3 2 3 2 3 1 0
Alberta 1 4 4 5 5 1 4 4 5 5 8
British Columbia 14 13 15 14 16 3 4 11 3 6 12
Yukon 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 2
Northwest Territories 2 2 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 3 2
Nunavut 1 1 12 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other airspace under Canadian air traffic control 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0
Outside Canada 1 0 1 1 6 2 4 3 2 10 2

Data extracted 5 March 2020

Table 9. Reportable aircraft incidents1, 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Incidents by category1 789 814 673 645 689 741 789 833 939 860 911
Risk of collision/Loss of separation 153 206 120 102 115 94 111 139 172 141 135
Declared emergency 313 310 275 266 294 313 333 311 348 340 365
Engine failure 107 87 95 92 83 104 110 110 98 91 103
Smoke/Fire 97 80 88 71 67 89 87 85 100 99 91
Collision 10 5 7 5 15 16 8 18 24 26 31
Control difficulties 24 32 31 33 25 40 29 35 34 41 25
Crew unable to perform duties 59 51 26 40 58 37 46 66 78 57 87
Dangerous goods-related 3 1 0 1 3 4 0 2 0 2 0
Depressurization 6 11 16 15 14 12 16 14 21 13 23
Fuel shortage 4 9 6 7 2 6 17 15 17 10 5
Failure to remain in landing area 7 12 7 10 9 20 17 19 22 11 9
Incorrect fuel 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 3
Slung load released 3 9 1 1 4 5 14 15 21 23 28
Transmission or gearbox failure 3 1 1 2 0 1 1 3 1 0 1
Incidents by operator type1,2 789 814 673 645 689 741 789 833 939 860 911
Commercial 753 781 637 609 656 699 741 785 888 815 866
Airliner (CAR 705) 498 520 446 409 450 429 437 490 614 547 569
Commuter (CAR 704) 88 87 76 83 95 106 87 79 73 60 66
Air taxi (CAR 703) 42 28 28 22 30 79 114 104 102 90 104
Aerial work (CAR 702) 32 28 15 11 12 34 48 43 55 55 60
Foreign air operator (CAR 701) 138 170 109 117 113 82 75 94 80 91 85
Flight training units (CAR 406) 7 9 4 3 4 5 6 12 11 7 13
Other commercial 2 3 2 1 1 0 2 5 1 2 4
Private 38 34 39 35 31 37 52 45 56 51 56
Private operators (CAR 604) 24 15 19 20 18 22 19 20 32 19 27
Recreational 13 19 20 15 13 14 15 13 11 9 8
Other private 1 0 1 0 0 1 18 12 13 23 22
State 22 23 13 20 20 13 15 8 15 11 6
Other/Unknown 9 6 5 4 4 12 15 22 13 12 12
Incidents by aircraft type1,2 789 814 673 645 689 741 789 833 939 860 911
Aeroplane 771 789 655 633 673 715 749 795 892 819 838
Helicopter 21 32 20 17 20 30 47 38 52 43 77
Ultralight/Other aircraft type3 1 2 0 0 0 3 8 7 4 4 6
Number of aircraft involved in incidents1,4 914 977 776 742 800 830 887 957 1063 970 1009
Aeroplanes 891 943 756 725 780 797 832 912 1006 921 924
Helicopters 22 32 20 17 20 30 47 38 53 45 79
Ultralight/Other aircraft type3 1 2 0 0 0 3 8 7 4 4 6
Incidents by province/territory1 789 814 673 645 689 741 789 833 939 860 911
Newfoundland and Labrador 16 30 14 17 29 22 30 31 27 35 29
Prince Edward Island 2 0 1 0 2 0 1 4 1 2 1
Nova Scotia 18 25 19 17 11 22 19 17 22 28 28
New Brunswick 5 10 7 7 7 8 9 9 4 7 11
Quebec 97 108 126 107 122 89 116 109 139 141 144
Ontario 195 176 174 155 166 157 152 166 230 144 166
Manitoba 45 51 31 31 31 51 54 47 49 43 44
Saskatchewan 18 19 11 18 27 32 21 25 19 16 24
Alberta 106 84 82 81 103 98 117 110 107 104 106
British Columbia 162 156 76 101 99 132 154 137 101 123 128
Yukon 6 4 3 4 5 6 6 5 5 2 8
Northwest Territories 14 21 30 17 16 25 17 9 20 22 9
Nunavut 8 21 19 19 10 20 15 15 15 19 15
Other airspace under Canadian air traffic control 33 31 27 23 23 24 20 32 19 14 17
Outside Canada 64 78 54 48 38 55 58 117 181 161 181

Data extracted 5 March 2020

  1. New TSB regulations came into effect on 1 July 2014. Under new reporting requirements aviation incidents include: a) aircraft having a maximum certificated take-off weight greater than 2 250 kg (formerly 5 700 kg); b) aircraft being operated under an air operator certificate issued under CARs Part VII.
  2. Breakdowns may not add up to totals. For example, when an occurrence involves an airplane and a helicopter, the occurrence is counted in each type, but only once in the total.
  3. Includes balloons, gyroplanes, gliders, airships, hang gliders, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and similar aircraft types.
  4. "Number of aircraft involved in accidents" are aircraft counts, all other data are accident counts.
Table 10. Reportable incidents involving Canadian-registered aircraft1, 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Incidents by category1 657 665 573 530 579 654 711 737 866 769 832
Risk of collision/Loss of separation 137 179 106 92 105 84 101 127 159 134 126
Declared emergency 237 238 224 200 231 277 290 263 316 298 317
Engine failure 94 67 87 77 70 94 102 102 88 79 96
Smoke/Fire 84 69 67 59 55 76 79 75 95 85 83
Collision 8 4 7 4 14 15 7 16 23 21 27
Control difficulties 18 24 27 31 22 36 28 30 33 40 25
Crew unable to perform duties 57 50 26 38 56 35 44 65 74 55 86
Dangerous goods-related 3 1 0 1 3 3 0 2 0 2 0
Depressurization 3 10 15 13 10 10 14 13 19 11 23
Fuel shortage 4 6 5 4 2 3 15 11 16 5 4
Failure to remain in landing area 6 7 7 9 7 17 17 14 18 10 8
Incorrect fuel 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 3
Slung load released 3 9 1 1 4 4 13 15 21 23 28
Transmission or gearbox failure 3 1 1 1 0 0 1 3 1 0 1
Incidents by operator type1,2 657 665 573 530 579 654 711 737 866 769 832
Commercial 629 641 547 504 552 622 674 705 825 741 797
Airliner (CAR 705) 494 519 443 409 449 427 436 489 613 546 568
Commuter (CAR 704) 88 87 76 83 95 106 87 79 73 60 66
Air taxi (CAR 703) 42 28 28 21 30 79 114 104 102 90 104
Aerial work (CAR 702) 31 28 15 11 12 31 47 43 55 55 60
Flight training units (CAR 406) 7 9 4 3 4 5 6 12 11 7 13
Other commercial 2 2 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 1 3
Private 29 29 29 28 25 29 40 37 48 33 45
Private operators (CAR 604) 16 12 11 14 13 17 16 20 32 19 26
Recreational 12 17 18 14 12 11 14 11 11 8 8
Other private 1 0 1 0 0 1 10 6 5 6 12
State 19 19 13 17 19 11 15 6 13 10 6
Other/Unknown 9 5 3 2 4 9 14 14 10 12 10
Incidents by aircraft type1,2 657 665 573 530 579 654 711 737 866 769 832
Aeroplane 639 642 555 519 563 631 672 699 819 728 759
Helicopter 21 31 20 16 20 27 46 38 52 43 77
Ultralight/Other aircraft type3 1 1 0 0 0 3 8 6 4 4 6
Number of aircraft involved in incidents1,4 772 811 667 619 681 730 800 843 981 874 922
Aeroplanes 749 779 647 603 661 700 746 799 924 825 837
Helicopters 22 31 20 16 20 27 46 38 53 45 79
Ultralight/Other aircraft type3 1 1 0 0 0 3 8 6 4 4 6
Incidents by province/territory1 657 665 573 530 579 654 711 737 866 769 832
Newfoundland and Labrador 7 13 10 10 17 13 20 22 22 22 15
Prince Edward Island 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 4 1 2 1
Nova Scotia 13 19 14 9 9 19 17 12 17 20 26
New Brunswick 3 8 5 7 4 6 9 9 3 6 8
Quebec 77 89 104 84 96 81 103 99 127 122 123
Ontario 168 141 146 127 142 139 141 148 202 129 146
Manitoba 39 45 30 30 27 45 51 44 47 38 44
Saskatchewan 16 15 11 14 26 27 19 25 18 14 24
Alberta 92 74 76 75 93 93 110 103 102 97 100
British Columbia 141 134 68 87 93 125 137 118 100 114 123
Yukon 6 3 3 3 3 5 6 5 3 2 8
Northwest Territories 14 19 30 17 16 25 17 8 20 21 8
Nunavut 7 17 16 15 10 16 14 15 14 16 14
Other airspace under Canadian air traffic control 9 10 6 4 4 5 8 8 9 5 11
Outside Canada 64 78 54 48 38 55 58 117 181 161 181

Data extracted 5 March 2020

  1. New TSB regulations came into effect on 1 July 2014. Under new reporting requirements aviation incidents include: a) aircraft having a maximum certificated take-off weight greater than 2 250 kg (formerly 5 700 kg); b) aircraft being operated under an air operator certificate issued under CARs Part VII.
  2. Breakdowns may not add up to totals. For example, when an occurrence involves an airplane and a helicopter, the occurrence is counted in each type, but only once in the total.
  3. Includes balloons, gyroplanes, gliders, airships, hang gliders, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and similar aircraft types.
  4. "Number of aircraft involved in incidents" are aircraft counts, all other data are incident counts.
Table 11. Number of accidents involving aeroplanes by phase of flight and selected event category1, 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Total
Standing/Taxiing 20 17 18 17 23 16 19 16 20 13 14 193
Collision with object 9 6 6 7 8 6 3 5 9 6 5 70
Collision with moving aircraft 3 1 1 2 1 3 5 4 3 3 2 28
Nosedown/Overturned 1 4 3 3 5 1 3 2 2 0 1 25
Landing gear collapsed/retracted 4 2 3 0 2 1 2 1 3 1 2 21
Loss of control 1 3 0 3 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 12
Other events 9 8 9 9 11 9 12 13 14 10 10 114
Takeoff 49 54 41 54 40 48 53 47 45 35 48 514
Collision with terrain 14 15 11 21 11 10 18 13 15 7 14 149
Loss of control 15 15 12 17 7 18 9 11 7 5 10 126
Collision with object 16 13 9 17 8 11 18 12 8 11 17 140
Take-off/Landing event 13 13 13 19 9 11 11 14 16 11 12 142
Power loss 12 14 11 6 13 16 12 10 11 5 12 122
Other events 34 35 28 33 26 34 50 30 35 31 38 374
En route 42 32 31 30 34 23 29 19 34 27 27 328
Power loss 26 13 14 15 15 14 8 12 15 11 12 155
Precautionary/Forced landing/Ditching 10 11 13 9 8 7 5 4 5 6 8 86
Collision with terrain 9 8 8 7 10 5 4 5 5 5 5 71
Component/System related 4 4 1 2 3 2 3 0 3 1 2 25
Other events 21 20 18 14 18 14 26 8 24 22 20 205
Manoeuvering 3 11 12 11 12 4 11 13 11 12 15 115
Collision with terrain 2 5 6 8 7 1 7 6 7 4 5 58
Loss of control 1 3 1 4 1 1 2 4 5 4 0 26
Collision with object 0 7 1 1 2 1 2 3 1 2 5 25
Power loss 1 1 3 1 0 0 1 2 1 1 1 12
Other events 1 3 9 2 5 3 4 6 2 8 12 55
Approach 31 29 23 21 32 28 25 17 21 25 26 278
Collision with terrain 12 11 7 6 6 7 10 4 7 5 8 83
Power loss 7 7 2 0 11 6 2 3 6 6 5 55
Collision with object 3 6 8 1 7 9 7 6 7 3 2 59
Component/System related 9 2 5 3 3 4 2 0 2 3 3 36
Precautionary/Forced landing/Ditching 4 5 2 2 7 7 1 1 4 5 7 45
Loss of control 3 6 3 4 5 1 4 1 0 1 5 33
Other events 14 9 8 14 10 9 18 12 13 18 20 145
Landing 121 112 113 111 116 99 118 113 95 92 94 1184
Missed or went off runway 24 24 27 26 28 14 30 30 21 17 23 264
Collision with object 23 25 28 26 18 20 29 24 23 29 25 270
Landing gear collapsed/retracted 18 26 24 22 25 17 27 27 23 19 17 245
Nosedown/Overturned 21 18 17 20 20 17 27 33 29 23 21 246
Loss of control 23 20 17 27 19 22 2 3 6 3 4 146
Hard landing 19 23 22 20 13 14 10 17 19 16 17 190
Collision with terrain 16 18 16 18 12 21 20 12 7 11 10 161
Wheels-up landing 12 7 3 7 10 7 10 9 4 5 7 81
Precautionary/Forced landing/Ditching 11 5 3 9 11 5 12 18 18 7 7 106
Other events 39 46 49 42 45 28 77 77 50 58 54 565
Post-impact 13 20 11 19 13 16 37 57 41 44 31 302
Fire/Explosion/Fumes 8 15 6 7 7 6 13 9 5 7 5 88
Other events 6 5 5 12 6 12 24 49 37 38 27 221

Data extracted 5 March 2020

  1. Breakdowns do not add up to totals. For example, in the take-off phase, if an occurrence involves both "Loss of control" and "Power loss" events, the occurrence is counted in each event category, but only once in the phase total.
Table 12. Number of accidents involving helicopters by phase of flight and selected event category1, 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Total
Standing/Taxiing 3 0 6 4 1 4 2 0 1 4 3 28
Collision with terrain 1 0 2 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 5
Loss of control 0 0 2 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 2 7
Collision with object 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 1 1 1 6
Other events 3 0 5 4 1 4 0 0 0 4 2 23
Takeoff 4 2 7 7 7 9 4 6 5 5 6 62
Loss of control 1 1 4 2 0 5 1 4 4 1 3 26
Collision with terrain 2 2 3 1 2 1 2 1 1 2 2 19
Collision with object 1 1 0 4 2 2 1 0 1 2 3 17
Power loss 1 0 2 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 6
Other events 1 1 1 2 2 4 1 3 2 2 4 23
En route 11 7 10 9 5 7 4 5 3 6 3 70
Collision with terrain 3 3 3 3 1 3 1 1 1 2 1 22
Power loss 5 3 2 3 1 1 1 3 0 1 0 20
Precautionary/Forced landing/Ditching 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 5
Component/System related 1 0 2 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 5
Other events 5 4 7 6 4 5 3 4 3 5 2 48
Manoeuvering 7 6 10 11 8 4 8 8 7 4 9 82
Collision with terrain 3 3 6 5 5 2 3 5 3 2 2 39
Loss of control 3 2 2 3 2 2 2 3 4 0 2 25
Collision with object 1 2 3 3 2 1 1 3 3 1 4 24
Operations related event 2 1 2 2 1 0 2 5 3 1 6 25
Power loss 2 1 0 2 1 0 2 1 1 0 2 12
Other events 5 1 3 6 2 2 5 5 5 2 7 43
Approach 5 4 6 7 3 3 3 5 2 2 1 41
Collision with terrain 3 4 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 10
Power loss 1 0 0 2 0 1 1 3 0 0 0 8
Loss of control 0 1 1 1 0 1 1 2 1 1 0 9
Collision with object 1 0 2 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 6
Other events 3 3 3 5 3 2 2 4 1 1 1 28
Landing 15 15 7 13 12 12 18 16 13 12 12 145
Hard landing 2 4 4 4 1 3 1 0 1 2 0 22
Collision with terrain 5 4 2 4 0 3 6 0 0 2 1 27
Loss of control 2 1 1 1 2 4 6 2 1 2 3 25
Collision with object 5 5 2 2 5 5 1 4 3 6 2 40
Other events 9 7 2 4 9 5 10 4 5 5 7 67
Post-impact 4 4 4 2 3 2 5 11 1 6 5 47
Fire/Explosion/Fumes 3 1 2 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 3 13
Other events 1 3 2 1 1 2 4 11 1 6 4 36

Data extracted 5 March 2020

  1. Breakdowns do not add up to totals. For example, in the take-off phase, if an occurrence involves both "Loss of control" and "Power loss" events, the occurrence is counted in each event category, but only once in the phase total.
Table 13. Number of FATAL accidents involving aeroplanes by phase of flight and selected event category1, 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Total
Standing/Taxiing 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 2 1 0 1 8
Collision with object 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Collision with moving aircraft 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Nosedown/Overturned 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Landing gear collapsed/retracted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Loss of control 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other events 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 2 1 0 1 8
Takeoff 6 6 4 6 4 2 9 5 6 5 7 60
Collision with terrain 6 2 1 4 3 0 4 4 5 2 5 36
Loss of control 3 1 2 2 2 1 4 4 2 2 2 25
Collision with object 1 0 1 2 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 8
Take-off/Landing event 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 5
Power loss 0 3 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 9
Other events 2 3 4 3 2 0 7 1 4 4 3 33
En route 8 9 9 8 9 3 7 5 5 6 9 78
Power loss 1 0 2 1 0 0 0 2 0 1 2 9
Precautionary/Forced landing/Ditching 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 3
Collision with terrain 4 8 5 6 7 3 4 4 3 5 5 54
Component/System related 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2
Other events 5 4 4 2 5 1 6 2 4 5 6 44
Manoeuvering 0 2 1 4 3 2 4 5 4 5 4 34
Collision with terrain 0 1 1 4 2 1 4 4 4 3 4 28
Loss of control 0 1 0 2 0 1 0 2 2 4 0 12
Collision with object 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 5
Power loss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other events 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 3 2 11
Approach 6 10 6 5 5 1 5 4 4 4 4 54
Collision with terrain 6 6 4 3 5 0 3 3 3 2 2 37
Power loss 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 4
Collision with object 0 2 2 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 7
Component/System related 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 3
Precautionary/Forced landing/Ditching 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3
Loss of control 2 5 0 1 2 0 0 1 0 0 1 12
Other events 3 4 1 4 1 1 2 2 2 2 3 25
Landing 3 3 5 3 3 4 4 5 0 1 4 35
Missed or went off runway 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 2
Collision with object 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 2 7
Landing gear collapsed/retracted 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Nosedown/Overturned 0 1 1 1 2 1 0 0 0 1 2 9
Loss of control 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
Hard landing 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Collision with terrain 0 2 2 3 2 2 2 4 0 0 1 18
Wheels-up landing 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Precautionary/Forced landing/Ditching 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 3
Other events 2 1 1 2 0 2 1 3 0 1 2 15
Post-impact 8 13 6 8 8 4 10 9 5 8 4 83
Fire/Explosion/Fumes 6 12 4 6 7 3 10 7 4 6 3 68
Other events 3 1 2 2 1 2 0 2 1 2 1 17

Data extracted 5 March 2020

  1. Breakdowns do not add up to totals. For example, in the take-off phase, if an occurrence involves both "Loss of control" and "Power loss" events, the occurrence is counted in each event category, but only once in the phase total.
Table 14. Number of FATAL accidents involving helicopters by phase of flight and selected event category1, 2009-2019
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Total
Standing/Taxiing 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Collision with terrain 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Loss of control 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Collision with object 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other events 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Takeoff 0 0 2 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 5
Loss of control 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Collision with terrain 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 3
Collision with object 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 2
Power loss 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Other events 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
En route 4 3 2 3 2 0 2 1 1 4 2 24
Collision with terrain 2 3 2 2 1 0 1 1 0 2 1 15
Power loss 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Precautionary/Forced landing/Ditching 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Component/System related 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Other events 1 2 1 2 2 0 1 1 1 3 1 15
Manoeuvering 3 0 4 3 2 0 1 1 1 1 1 17
Collision with terrain 2 0 3 1 2 0 1 0 1 1 0 11
Loss of control 2 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 5
Collision with object 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 3
Operations related event 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 5
Power loss 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 4
Other events 2 0 2 2 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 9
Approach 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4
Collision with terrain 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
Power loss 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Loss of control 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2
Collision with object 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Other events 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Landing 2 0 1 2 0 0 2 0 1 0 1 9
Hard landing 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Collision with terrain 2 0 1 2 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 6
Loss of control 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1
Collision with object 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 5
Other events 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2
Post-impact 4 0 1 1 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 9
Fire/Explosion/Fumes 3 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 7
Other events 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2

Data extracted 5 March 2020

  1. Breakdowns do not add up to totals. For example, in the take-off phase, if an occurrence involves both "Loss of control" and "Power loss" events, the occurrence is counted in each event category, but only once in the phase total.

Definitions

The following definitions apply to aviation occurrences that are required to be reported pursuant to the Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board Act and the TSB regulations.

Aviation occurrence

Reportable aviation accident

An accident resulting directly from the operation of an aircraft where:

Reportable aviation incident

An incident involving an aircraft having a maximum certificated take-off weight greater than 2 250 kg, or of an aircraft being operated under an air operator certificate issued under Part VII of the Canadian Aviation Regulations, where:

Collision

Collision means an impact, other than an impact associated with normal operating circumstances, between aircraft or between an aircraft and another object or terrain.

Risk of collision

Risk of collision means a situation in which an aircraft comes so close to being involved in a collision that a threat to the safety of any person, property or the environment exists.

Loss of separation

Loss of separation means a situation in which the distance separating two aircraft is less than the minimum established in the Canadian Domestic Air Traffic Control Separation Standards, published by the Department of Transport, as amended from time to time.

Serious injury

ATS-Related Event

Any event related to the provision of air traffic control services including, but not limited to, failure or inability to provide service, emergency handling, or loss of in-flight separation.

Air Proximity Event

A situation in which, in the opinion of a pilot or air traffic services personnel, the distance between aircraft as well as their positions and speed have been such that the safety of the aircraft involved may have been compromised.

Operation

Operation means the activities for which an aircraft is used from the time any person boards the aircraft with the intention of flight until they disembark.

Operator

Operator has the same meaning as in subsection 101.01(1) of the Canadian Aviation Regulations.

Commercial Operators

Commercial operators include carriers that offer a “for-hire” service to transport people or goods, or to undertake specific tasks such as aerial photography, flight training, or crop spraying.

Airliner

An aeroplane used by a Canadian air operator in an air transport service or in aerial work involving sightseeing operations, that has a MCTOW of more than 8618 kg (19 000 pounds) or for which a Canadian type certificate has been issued authorizing the transport of 20 or more passengers.

Commuter Aircraft

An aeroplane used by a Canadian air operator, in an air transport service or in aerial work involving sightseeing operations, in which the aircraft is:

Aerial Work Aircraft

A commercially operated aeroplane or helicopter used in aerial work involving

Air Taxi Aircraft

A commercially operated aircraft used in an air transport service or in aerial work involving sightseeing operations, in which the aircraft is:

State Operators

State operators include the federal and provincial governments.

Corporate Operators

Corporate operators include companies flying for business reasons.

Private Operators

Private operators include individuals flying for pleasure. Included are flights on which it is not possible to transport people or cargo on a “for-hire” basis.