FAA Rotorcraft Monthly Accident Briefing - July

6 days ago
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Updated: 2 days ago

Attached is the Rotorcraft Monthly Accident Briefing for July 2026 (tenth month of FY26).

(Covers Part 27, Part 29, and Restricted Category rotorcraft accidents to U.S. registered aircraft. Does not include gyrocopters or experimental aircraft.)

Please access the information from this briefing directly anytime at the FAA’s publicly available, Rotorcraft Accident Dashboard.

Find “Dashboard Navigation” near the top of the default page and click either “Historical Briefing”, “USHST Metrics”, or “Make Model Breakdown” for access to all 4 pages of visualized and interactive data.

Monthly Summary

July Totals: 13 accidents, 2 fatal accidents, 2 fatalities

- The monthly total of 13 accidents was the highest for the ten months so far in FY26. Outside of the current FY, the total was the highest since August 2025 when 18 accidents occurred.

- July has historically been the highest accident month in the U.S for Part 27, Part 29, and Restricted Category rotorcraft. The most recent 5-year average for July (2021-2025) was 16 accidents.

- Two industry sectors accounted for 77% (10 out of 13) of the accidents. Aerial application had 46% of the total (6 out of 13) and Personal/Private had 31% of the total (4 out of 13).

- In at least 67% of the Aerial Application accidents in July, there was power line involvement in the accident sequence (all events still under investigation).

- Of the two fatal accidents, one involved the Personal/Private industry sector while the other was supporting Firefighting.

FY26 Summary

FY26 Totals: 67 accidents, 14 fatal accidents, 25 fatalities

Accidents (includes both fatal & non-fatal accidents):

- The FY26 estimated accident rate for Oct-Jul was 2.71 per 100K hours (6% lower than the same period in FY25 and 25% lower than the 5-year average for the same period).

- Distribution of accidents by Operating Part so far in FY26:

-- Part 91 – 58%, Part 133 – 4%, Part 135 – 15%, Part 137 – 16%. Remaining accidents: 6% operated as Public Use aircraft.

- The count of 67 accidents from Oct-Jul is the lowest total for that time for the 44 FYs on record.

- The 67 accidents in FY26 have occurred in 10 different industry sectors. The top three percentages to date were: 1) Personal/Private: 33%, 2) Aerial Application: 16%, 3) Helicopter Air Ambulance: 13%

Fatal Accidents:

- The FY26 estimated fatal accident rate for Oct-Jul was 0.57 per 100K hours (19% lower than the same period in FY25 and 14% lower than the 5-year average for the same period).

- Distribution of fatal accidents by Operating Part so far in FY26:

-- Part 91 – 50%, Part 133 – 14%, Part 135 – 29%, Part 137 – 0%. Remaining fatal accidents: 7% operated as Public Use aircraft.

- The count of 14 fatal accidents from Oct-Jul was in a five-way tie for the third lowest total for that time period for the 44 FYs on record.

- The 14 fatal accidents in FY26 have occurred in eight different industry sectors. Three industry sectors had multiple fatal accidents: 1) Personal/Private: (5 events, 36%) 2) (tie) Helicopter Air Ambulance & Utilities Patrol/Construction: (each w/2 events,14%).

Fatalities:

- The FY26 estimated occupant fatality rate for Oct-Jul was 1.01 per 100K hours (30% lower than the same period in FY25 and 20% lower than the 5-year average for the same period).

- Through 10 months, 21% of the rotorcraft accidents in FY26 had a fatality (long term historical percentage is 17-18%).

- Multiple fatalities occurred in 43% of the 14 fatal accidents.

- Distribution of fatalities by Operating Part so far for FY26:

-- Part 91 – 56%, Part 133 – 8%, Part 135 – 28%, Part 137 – 0%. Remaining fatalities: 8% operated as Public Use aircraft.

U.S. Helicopter Safety Team (USHST) Calendar Year Metrics

The USHST’s 5-year goals for 2025-2029 are based on individual 14 CFR Operating Parts, tracked by the 5-year average fatal accident rates per 100K hours.

14 CFR Part	Baseline, CY2018-2022 (per 100K hours)	Goal, CY2025-2029 (per 100K hours)	Progress, CY2022-2026 (per 100K hours)
91	0.81	0.73 (10% reduction)	0.47
133	1.73	1.56 (10% reduction)	0.90
135	0.33	0.17 (50% reduction)	0.42
137	1.11	1.00 (10% reduction)	1.10