Epidemiology of Toxicological Factors in Civil Aviation Accident Pilot Fatalities, 1999-2003

Abstract

Prevalence of drug and ethanol use in aviation is monitored by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Under such monitoring, epidemiological studies for the 1989-1993 and 11994-1998 periods indicated lower percentages of the presence of illegal (abused) drugs than that of prescription and nonprescription drugs in aviation accident pilot fatalities. In continuation of these studies, an epidemiological assessment was made for an additional period of 5 years. Postmortem samples from aviation accident pilot fatalities submitted to the FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute (CAMI) are toxicologically analyzed, and those analytical findings are stored in a database. This CAMI database was examined for the period of 19992003 for the presence of controlled substances of Schedules IV, prescription and nonprescription drugs, and ethanol in the pilot fatalities. Out of 1629 fatal aviation accidents from which CAMI received biosamples, there were 1587 accidents wherein pilots were fatally injured. Drugs and/or ethanol were found in 830 of the 1587 fatalities. Controlled substances of Schedules I and II and Schedules IIIV were detected in 113 and 42 pilots, respectively. Prescription drugs were present in 315 pilots, nonprescription drugs in 259 pilots, and ethanol in 101 pilots. Controlled substances of Schedules I and II were detected in only 5 of the 122 First-Class medical certificate-holding airline transport pilots. In addition to the controlled substances, many of the prescription and nonprescription drugs found in the fatalities have the potential for impairing performance, thereby adversely affecting the ability of an individual to optimally pilot an aircraft.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Nov 01, 2005
Accession Number
ADA460798

Entities

People

  • Arvind K. Chaturvedi
  • Dennis V. Canfield
  • James E. Whinnery
  • Kristi J. Craft

Organizations

  • Federal Aviation Administration

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accident Investigations
  • Accidents
  • Aircrafts
  • Alkenes
  • Anticonvulsants
  • Antidepressants
  • Aviation Accidents
  • Central Nervous System
  • Chemistry
  • Civil Aviation
  • Commercial Pilots
  • Controlled Substances
  • Drug Abuse
  • Health Care
  • Health Services
  • Nonprescription Drugs
  • Prescription Drugs

Fields of Study

  • Medicine

Readers

  • Aviation Safety Risk Assessment.
  • Aviation Science / Aeronautics.
  • Child and Adolescent Substance Abuse Science in Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Technology Areas

  • Space