14-Feb-2018 Source: USHST
Usually, helicopter accidents occur in states where more helicopters are flying year round and where helicopters operate most often for industry purposes. During the 10-year period from 2007 to 2016, a large percentage of helicopter operations took place west of the Rocky Mountains and that is reflected in the accident totals.
Helicopter Accidents – 2007 to 2016
U.S. Total 1,457
Within nine states in the U.S. West (Cal, Ariz, Wash, Alask, Ore, Utah, Col, Nev, Haw), there were 558 accidents in the 10-year period, accounting for 38 percent of all helicopter accidents. Three states on the Gulf of Mexico (Tex, Flor, La) totaled 298 accidents – 20 percent of all accidents in the country. Two states in the north were on the list (Penn, Minn), totaling 63 accidents – 4 percent of the U.S. total. In the remaining 36 states plus D.C. and Puerto Rico, there were 538 accidents – 37 percent of the total.
During 2017, the three states at the top of the list remain the same, but there are some differences: