Running head: CONTRIBUTING FACTORS AMONG LOSS OF CONTROL ACCIDENTS 1 Contributing Factors Among Fatal Loss of Control Accidents in Multiengine Turbine Aircraft

Aircraft accidents resulting from an in-flight loss of control have been the leading killer in aviation for more than a decade, but have only recently become a topic of serious concern in the aviation industry. There is a current trend of highly-trained and experienced pilots losing control of large, advanced multiengine turbine aircraft, resulting in catastrophic accidents, with many casualties. Utilizing an analysis of all National Transportation Safety Board accident reports involving multiengine turbine aircraft in the United States over the past ten years, this study examined the contributing factors among the fatal in-flight loss of control accidents involving such aircraft. The data were analyzed and the five most frequent causes of loss of control accidents were identified, along with a number of factors that shared strong interactions. The results provide important insight into the nature of these factors for future research and training techniques