Although we have reached the end of 2002, it takes quite a while for the accident statistics to catch up with us. While enjoying the Yuletide season, we only get a statistical picture up to July. The total picture may indeed change as the months progress, but one thing is obvious from the current trend:We have taken a big jump in numbers over the previous year and in our five-year average. If this was some general phenomenon afflicting all of aviation, one might be able to rationalize it; but it seems to be specific to the helicopter side, as our brothers and sisters in the fixed-wing appear to be doing a wonderful job of reducing their accident rate, and quite substantially.Why the big difference?

Is it because of our largely unsupported work areas, or is our training inadequate or are the machines falling apart? It is difficult to determine from the stats available as they are not broken down with regard to cause vs. aircraft type, but something is clearly amiss. I would hypothesize that despite our best efforts and intentions, we may not be doing all the right things.

As the statute of limitations has expired on this particular personal experience, I would like to share it with you. While enjoying some gracious dining with friends at an Italian restaurant in Charlottetown, we would occasionally smell smoke. Upon closer inspection, the building was of an old Victorian style with a fireplace in every room.No doubt in an effort to create the appropriate ambiance, the proprietor had a fire going in all these fireplaces using processed logs as opposed to the real wood kind. As a pilot who just came off an intense season of fighting fires and full of useless tidbits of information, I informed our party of the principles of convection currents associated with fires, and that without sufficient flame, the smoke was bound to come back into the room and not go up the chimney where it belonged.