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NTSB phases of flight

When each accident or incident happened, for 177,594 cases since 1962. From 1962 to 1981 and from 2008 on, NTSB codes phases with the CICTT phases it uses now. From 1982 to 2007 it used its older phase codes, which are counted here under the CICTT main phase each maps to (in gray on the charts).

CICTT phases of flight (PDF)NTSB coding manual, before 2008 (PDF)

All phases

Cases since 1962 in each phase, with the fatal ones.

Query with SQL
duckdb -csv -c "WITH phase_names(main, name) AS (VALUES (100, 'Prior to flight'), (150, 'Standing'), (200, 'Pushback/towing'), (250, 'Taxi'), (300, 'Takeoff'), (350, 'Initial climb'), (400, 'Enroute'), (450, 'Maneuvering'), (500, 'Approach'), (550, 'Landing'), (600, 'Emergency descent'), (650, 'Uncontrolled descent'), (700, 'Post-impact'), (750, 'After landing'), (800, 'Other'), (990, 'Unknown')),
    crosswalk(code, main, name) AS (VALUES (500, 150, 'Standing'), (501, 150, 'Standing - pre-flight'), (502, 150, 'Standing - starting engine(s)'), (503, 150, 'Standing - engine(s) operating'), (504, 150, 'Standing - engine(s) not operating'), (505, 150, 'Standing - idling rotors'), (510, 250, 'Taxi'), (511, 200, 'Taxi - pushback/tow'), (512, 250, 'Taxi - to takeoff'), (513, 250, 'Taxi - from landing'), (514, 250, 'Taxi - aerial'), (520, 300, 'Takeoff'), (521, 300, 'Takeoff - roll/run'), (522, 350, 'Takeoff - initial climb'), (523, 300, 'Takeoff - aborted'), (530, 400, 'Climb'), (531, 400, 'Climb - to cruise'), (540, 400, 'Cruise'), (541, 400, 'Cruise - normal'), (542, 400, 'Maneuvering - holding (IFR)'), (550, 400, 'Descent'), (551, 400, 'Descent - normal'), (552, 600, 'Descent - emergency'), (553, 650, 'Descent - uncontrolled'), (560, 500, 'Approach'), (561, 500, 'Approach - VFR pattern - downwind'), (562, 500, 'Approach - VFR pattern - base turn'), (563, 500, 'Approach - VFR pattern - base leg/base to final'), (564, 500, 'Approach - VFR pattern - final approach'), (565, 500, 'Go-around (VFR)'), (566, 500, 'Approach - IAF to FAF/outer marker (IFR)'), (567, 500, 'Approach - FAF/outer marker to threshold (IFR)'), (568, 500, 'Circling (IFR)'), (569, 500, 'Missed approach (IFR)'), (570, 550, 'Landing'), (571, 550, 'Landing - flare/touchdown'), (572, 550, 'Landing - roll'), (573, 550, 'Landing - aborted'), (574, 550, 'Emergency landing'), (575, 550, 'Emergency landing after takeoff'), (576, 600, 'Emergency descent/landing'), (580, 450, 'Maneuvering'), (581, 450, 'Maneuvering - aerial application'), (582, 450, 'Maneuvering - turn to reverse direction'), (583, 450, 'Maneuvering - turn to landing area (emergency)'), (590, 450, 'Hover'), (591, 450, 'Hover - in ground effect'), (592, 450, 'Hover - out of ground effect'), (600, 800, 'Other'), (610, 990, 'Unknown')),
    current_codes AS (
      SELECT e.case_mkey, TRY_CAST(e.\"tier1Number\" AS INTEGER) AS code,
        row_number() OVER (PARTITION BY e.case_mkey ORDER BY coalesce(e.\"isDefiningEvent\", false) DESC, e.position) AS n
      FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_events.parquet' e
      WHERE e.aircrafts_position = 1 AND e.\"tier1Number\" GLOB '[1-9][0-9]*'
        AND (e.\"isDefiningEvent\" OR e.case_mkey IN (SELECT \"mKey\" FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_case_detail.parquet' WHERE \"isPre1982\"))
    ),
    phases AS (
      SELECT case_mkey, 'current' AS scheme, code, CASE WHEN code >= 990 THEN 990 ELSE code // 50 * 50 END AS main
      FROM current_codes WHERE n = 1
      UNION ALL
      SELECT o.case_mkey, 'older', o.\"phaseOfFlightCode\", w.main
      FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_occurrences.parquet' o JOIN crosswalk w ON w.code = o.\"phaseOfFlightCode\"
      WHERE o.aircrafts_position = 1 AND o.\"occurrenceNumber\" = 1 AND o.case_mkey NOT IN (SELECT case_mkey FROM current_codes)
    ),
    case_phases AS (
      SELECT p.*, c.\"eventDate\", c.\"highestInjuryLevel\" = 'Fatal' AS fatal, a.aircraft_model_code
      FROM phases p JOIN 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_case_detail.parquet' c ON c.\"mKey\" = p.case_mkey
      LEFT JOIN 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_aircrafts.parquet' a ON a.case_mkey = p.case_mkey AND a.position = 1
      WHERE c.\"eventDate\" >= DATE '1962-01-01' AND p.main IN (SELECT main FROM phase_names)
    )
  SELECT p.main AS phase, n.name, count(*) AS cases, count(*) FILTER (WHERE p.fatal) AS fatal_cases,
    count(*) FILTER (WHERE p.scheme = 'older') AS older_codes
  FROM case_phases p JOIN phase_names n USING (main)
  GROUP BY ALL
  ORDER BY cases DESC"

Prints the counts as CSV. It reads the release’s Parquet files over HTTPS, so there’s nothing to download first. Install DuckDB to run it.

Over the years

In gray, cases in NTSB’s older codes, counted through the table below. Compare years within an era: the coding changed in 1982 and 2008, and so does the part of the record the phase comes from. A first occurrence (1982 to 2007) is often in flight, before the landing, so landings count lower then.

Landing
19622026

53,676 cases · 764 fatal

Enroute
19622026

35,864 cases · 9,802 fatal

Approach
19622026

20,989 cases · 4,386 fatal

Initial climb
19622026

20,554 cases · 3,669 fatal

Maneuvering
19622026

18,845 cases · 6,439 fatal

Takeoff
19622026

14,027 cases · 836 fatal

Taxi
19622026

6,396 cases · 72 fatal

Uncontrolled descent
19622026

2,195 cases · 1,833 fatal

Standing
19622026

2,081 cases · 204 fatal

Unknown
19622026

1,970 cases · 1,401 fatal

Emergency descent
19622026

507 cases · 86 fatal

Other
19622026

211 cases · 75 fatal

Prior to flight
19622026

136 cases · 8 fatal

Pushback/towing
19622026

133 cases · 4 fatal

Query with SQL
duckdb -csv -c "WITH phase_names(main, name) AS (VALUES (100, 'Prior to flight'), (150, 'Standing'), (200, 'Pushback/towing'), (250, 'Taxi'), (300, 'Takeoff'), (350, 'Initial climb'), (400, 'Enroute'), (450, 'Maneuvering'), (500, 'Approach'), (550, 'Landing'), (600, 'Emergency descent'), (650, 'Uncontrolled descent'), (700, 'Post-impact'), (750, 'After landing'), (800, 'Other'), (990, 'Unknown')),
    crosswalk(code, main, name) AS (VALUES (500, 150, 'Standing'), (501, 150, 'Standing - pre-flight'), (502, 150, 'Standing - starting engine(s)'), (503, 150, 'Standing - engine(s) operating'), (504, 150, 'Standing - engine(s) not operating'), (505, 150, 'Standing - idling rotors'), (510, 250, 'Taxi'), (511, 200, 'Taxi - pushback/tow'), (512, 250, 'Taxi - to takeoff'), (513, 250, 'Taxi - from landing'), (514, 250, 'Taxi - aerial'), (520, 300, 'Takeoff'), (521, 300, 'Takeoff - roll/run'), (522, 350, 'Takeoff - initial climb'), (523, 300, 'Takeoff - aborted'), (530, 400, 'Climb'), (531, 400, 'Climb - to cruise'), (540, 400, 'Cruise'), (541, 400, 'Cruise - normal'), (542, 400, 'Maneuvering - holding (IFR)'), (550, 400, 'Descent'), (551, 400, 'Descent - normal'), (552, 600, 'Descent - emergency'), (553, 650, 'Descent - uncontrolled'), (560, 500, 'Approach'), (561, 500, 'Approach - VFR pattern - downwind'), (562, 500, 'Approach - VFR pattern - base turn'), (563, 500, 'Approach - VFR pattern - base leg/base to final'), (564, 500, 'Approach - VFR pattern - final approach'), (565, 500, 'Go-around (VFR)'), (566, 500, 'Approach - IAF to FAF/outer marker (IFR)'), (567, 500, 'Approach - FAF/outer marker to threshold (IFR)'), (568, 500, 'Circling (IFR)'), (569, 500, 'Missed approach (IFR)'), (570, 550, 'Landing'), (571, 550, 'Landing - flare/touchdown'), (572, 550, 'Landing - roll'), (573, 550, 'Landing - aborted'), (574, 550, 'Emergency landing'), (575, 550, 'Emergency landing after takeoff'), (576, 600, 'Emergency descent/landing'), (580, 450, 'Maneuvering'), (581, 450, 'Maneuvering - aerial application'), (582, 450, 'Maneuvering - turn to reverse direction'), (583, 450, 'Maneuvering - turn to landing area (emergency)'), (590, 450, 'Hover'), (591, 450, 'Hover - in ground effect'), (592, 450, 'Hover - out of ground effect'), (600, 800, 'Other'), (610, 990, 'Unknown')),
    current_codes AS (
      SELECT e.case_mkey, TRY_CAST(e.\"tier1Number\" AS INTEGER) AS code,
        row_number() OVER (PARTITION BY e.case_mkey ORDER BY coalesce(e.\"isDefiningEvent\", false) DESC, e.position) AS n
      FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_events.parquet' e
      WHERE e.aircrafts_position = 1 AND e.\"tier1Number\" GLOB '[1-9][0-9]*'
        AND (e.\"isDefiningEvent\" OR e.case_mkey IN (SELECT \"mKey\" FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_case_detail.parquet' WHERE \"isPre1982\"))
    ),
    phases AS (
      SELECT case_mkey, 'current' AS scheme, code, CASE WHEN code >= 990 THEN 990 ELSE code // 50 * 50 END AS main
      FROM current_codes WHERE n = 1
      UNION ALL
      SELECT o.case_mkey, 'older', o.\"phaseOfFlightCode\", w.main
      FROM 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_occurrences.parquet' o JOIN crosswalk w ON w.code = o.\"phaseOfFlightCode\"
      WHERE o.aircrafts_position = 1 AND o.\"occurrenceNumber\" = 1 AND o.case_mkey NOT IN (SELECT case_mkey FROM current_codes)
    ),
    case_phases AS (
      SELECT p.*, c.\"eventDate\", c.\"highestInjuryLevel\" = 'Fatal' AS fatal, a.aircraft_model_code
      FROM phases p JOIN 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_case_detail.parquet' c ON c.\"mKey\" = p.case_mkey
      LEFT JOIN 'https://openairdocs.org/data/latest/ntsb_aircrafts.parquet' a ON a.case_mkey = p.case_mkey AND a.position = 1
      WHERE c.\"eventDate\" >= DATE '1962-01-01' AND p.main IN (SELECT main FROM phase_names)
    )
  SELECT n.name AS phase, year(p.\"eventDate\") AS year, count(*) AS cases,
    count(*) FILTER (WHERE p.scheme = 'older') AS older_codes
  FROM case_phases p JOIN phase_names n USING (main)
  GROUP BY ALL
  ORDER BY ALL"

Prints the counts as CSV. It reads the release’s Parquet files over HTTPS, so there’s nothing to download first. Install DuckDB to run it.

How the older codes are counted

Each case counts once, on its first aircraft: by the phase of its defining event from 2008, of its first event before 1982, and of its first occurrence from 1982 to 2007. Most older codes name the same phase as a CICTT one; those marked closest straddle two, and are counted under the one listed.

The 50 older codes and where each is counted
Older codeNTSB’s nameCounted asNote
500StandingStanding
501Standing - pre-flightStanding
502Standing - starting engine(s)Standing
503Standing - engine(s) operatingStanding
504Standing - engine(s) not operatingStanding
505Standing - idling rotorsStanding
510TaxiTaxi
511Taxi - pushback/towPushback/towing
512Taxi - to takeoffTaxi
513Taxi - from landingTaxi
514Taxi - aerialTaxi (closest)A helicopter's hover taxi; CICTT counts it as taxi.
520TakeoffTakeoff
521Takeoff - roll/runTakeoff
522Takeoff - initial climbInitial climb
523Takeoff - abortedTakeoff
530ClimbEnroute (closest)The climb after the initial climb, which CICTT puts in enroute (401, climb to cruise).
531Climb - to cruiseEnroute
540CruiseEnroute
541Cruise - normalEnroute
542Maneuvering - holding (IFR)EnrouteCICTT 405, enroute holding.
550DescentEnroute (closest)A normal descent, which CICTT puts in enroute (404).
551Descent - normalEnroute
552Descent - emergencyEmergency descent
553Descent - uncontrolledUncontrolled descent
560ApproachApproach
561Approach - VFR pattern - downwindApproach
562Approach - VFR pattern - base turnApproach
563Approach - VFR pattern - base leg/base to finalApproach
564Approach - VFR pattern - final approachApproach
565Go-around (VFR)ApproachCICTT 509, VFR go-around.
566Approach - IAF to FAF/outer marker (IFR)Approach
567Approach - FAF/outer marker to threshold (IFR)Approach
568Circling (IFR)Approach
569Missed approach (IFR)Approach
570LandingLanding
571Landing - flare/touchdownLanding
572Landing - rollLanding
573Landing - abortedLanding
574Emergency landingLanding (closest)CICTT has no emergency landing phase; it is a landing.
575Emergency landing after takeoffLanding (closest)As 574.
576Emergency descent/landingEmergency descent (closest)Names both; counted as the emergency descent that led to the landing.
580ManeuveringManeuvering
581Maneuvering - aerial applicationManeuvering
582Maneuvering - turn to reverse directionManeuvering
583Maneuvering - turn to landing area (emergency)Maneuvering
590HoverManeuveringCICTT 453, maneuvering hover.
591Hover - in ground effectManeuvering
592Hover - out of ground effectManeuvering
600OtherOther
610UnknownUnknown