According to experts on this kind of problems, air-ambulance helicopters have the worst fatal crash record in aviation, and their crews are among the most likely to die on the job. He told this to a panel of federal investigators on Tuesday. The rate of fatalities per 100,000 air-ambulance employees over the past 10 years exceeds other dangerous professions such as logging or deep-sea fishing.

Even if few patients have died, 34 out of about 4.3 million transported since 1972, it’s a very risky job. A typical emergency run involves three trips: one to pick up the patient, another to transport the victim and a third to return to the helicopter base after the patient is dropped off. Of course, relatives of recent crash victims have clearly demanded that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) take action to stem the death toll.

Since 1972, 264 people died in air-ambulance crashes, and nine fatal crashes since December 2007 have killed 35 people, the highest death toll in the industry’s history. However, Canada has not had a fatality since 1977, and that’s because it requires two pilots on each helicopter and flights are conducted under more rigorous standards for weather.

A NTSB hearing is trying to find out what could be driving the recent increase in fatal crashes, as several witnesses raised concerns about the competition to make the helicopter flights cheaper could be driving up the accident rates. It’s clear for everyone that a joint effort is needed in order to stop this type of accidents, because an improvement is a must.