科比的去世讓人們關(guān)注直升機的安全

科比的去世讓人們關(guān)注直升機的安全

For the vast majority of Americans, helicopters are hardly a routine form of transportation. But a high-profile helicopter disaster — like the crash in Calabasas, Calif., that killed Kobe Bryant and eight other people on Sunday — can draw widespread attention to helicopter safety.

對于絕大多數(shù)美國人來說，直升機幾乎不是一種常規(guī)的交通工具。但是，一場備受矚目的直升機災(zāi)難——比如周日發(fā)生在加州卡拉巴薩斯、導致科比·布萊恩特和另外八人喪生的墜機事故——可以讓人們廣泛關(guān)注直升機的安全性。

Helicopter rides are significantly riskier than commercial airline flights, but not as dangerous as a trip on a personal plane. And some trips — like personal or private helicopter rides — are far more likely than others to end in a fatal accident.

乘坐直升機的風險比乘坐商業(yè)航班大得多，但沒有乘坐私人飛機那么危險。有些旅行——比如個人或私人直升機旅行——比其他旅行更有可能發(fā)生致命事故。

"I think it is natural to the public, whenever an accident happens, to start to question the overall safety of a certain type of flying," says Anthony Brickhouse, a professor of aerospace and occupational safety at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. "I would just caution people to be patient and to let the investigation play out so that we can figure out what happened."

“我認為，對公眾來說，每當發(fā)生事故時，就會開始質(zhì)疑某種飛行的整體安全性，這是很自然的，”安柏瑞德航空大學航空航天與職業(yè)安全教授安東尼•布里克豪斯表示。“我只是提醒人們要有耐心，讓調(diào)查進行下去，這樣我們才能弄清楚到底發(fā)生了什么。”

Commercial plane travel is extremely safe, despite recent catastrophes like the Boeing 737 Max crashes; in many years the fatal accident rate in the U.S. is zero. Helicopters are more dangerous, according to data from the federal government, with a fatal accident rate of 0.72 per 100.000 flight hours in 2018.

商用飛機旅行是極其安全的，盡管最近發(fā)生了波音737 MAX墜機等災(zāi)難;多年來，美國的致命事故率為零。根據(jù)聯(lián)邦政府的數(shù)據(jù)，直升機更危險，2018年每10萬飛行小時的致命事故率為0.72.

But general aviation — like recreational flying — is even more dangerous than that, with a fatal accident rate of more than 1 accident per 100.000 flight hours in 2018.

但通用航空-就像娛樂飛行一樣-甚至比這更危險，2018年每10萬個飛行小時的致命事故率超過1起。

In general, helicopters today are safer than they used to be: Over the past two decades, the fatal accident rate has dropped by half, according to the United States Helicopter Safety Team, or USHST, an alliance of government and industry representatives.

總體而言，今天的直升機比過去更安全：根據(jù)由政府和行業(yè)代表組成的聯(lián)盟美國直升機安全小組(簡稱USHST)的數(shù)據(jù)，在過去20年里，致命事故率下降了一半。

But the past few years have seen mixed results. The fatal accident rate rose in 2017 and 2018 before dropping slightly last year.

但過去幾年的結(jié)果喜憂參半。2017年和2018年的致命事故率有所上升，去年略有下降。

Some helicopter rides are far riskier than others. In the U.S., sightseeing tours, police and news trips, and aerial observation flights tend to be safer than other flights, the USHST says. Corporate flights and "air taxi" flights are in the middle of the pack.

有些乘坐直升機的風險要比其他的高得多。USHST說，在美國，觀光旅游、警察和新聞旅行以及空中觀察飛行往往比其他航班更安全。公司航班和“空中出租車”航班位居中間。

And personal or private helicopter flights are responsible for a disproportionate number of fatal helicopter accidents. Personal or private rides account for just 3% of flight hours but more than a quarter of fatal accidents.

個人或私人直升機飛行造成了不成比例的直升機致命事故。個人或私人交通工具只占飛行時間的3%，但致命事故的四分之一以上。

To make helicopter flights safer, the USHST urges changes in training and technology. It also urges pilots to avoid flying too low.

為了使直升機飛行更安全，USHST敦促在培訓和技術(shù)上做出改變。它還敦促飛行員避免飛得太低。

The group also highlights the risk of "get-there-itis," when pilots are so determined to arrive at a destination that they ignore signs of risk. In some cases a powerful passenger can also put pressure on a pilot to complete a trip in unsafe conditions, pilots say.

該組織還強調(diào)了“到達目的地”的風險，即飛行員決心到達目的地，以至于忽視了風險跡象。飛行員說，在某些情況下，強大的乘客還會向飛行員施加壓力，讓他在不安全的條件下完成一次旅行。