Flight Hours and Sectors
Reliable usage statistics are fundamental to the calculation of rates. Only by producing and analysing this rate data can we hope to truly understand the safety performance of the industry and how it is changing.
The figures below show the industry flight hours as reported by the Western OEMs for the last 11 years and an estimate of the corresponding sectors.
Industry Flight Hours
The data supplied by the Western OEMs includes all types of offshore activity, including wind farm. To allow for this, the reported flight hours have been reduced by 5% to correct for that difference and give a more conservative accident rate.
The figures continue to show the significant reduction in flight hours that has been seen in the industry since 2013.
Estimated Industry Sectors
The sector estimates shown above are calculated using an average sector length of 2.1 sectors per hour for data up to 2018 . The estimates from 2018 onwards are calculated using an average sector length specific to each aircraft type, calculated from member usage data, applied against the hours flown.
The figure below shows the average sector lengths that were used in estimating the number of sectors for the six aircraft types with the highest reported flight hours.
