"Gary Drescher" wrote:
So my conclusion is that we just don't know, with any
reasonable reliability, how YE's fatality rate compares with
GA generally.

Offhand, I don't know of any reason that a plantiff or insurer
would care whether the FAA or NTSB knows that a flight
was a YE flight; what reason do you see for that?

On both points, fatal cases especially are thoroughly investigated.
I was a witness on a fatal case, and since we all were from out of
town, I had dinner with the guys by just showing up at the same
restaurant that evening. They interview a whole bunch of people
with any knowledge of the pilot and the flight. It might include
exploring behind a pax a stranger to the pilot. They often need
indirect evidence to understand what probably happened. This is
likely what happened in the Colorado case, except no signed release
to be found.

I suspect at least 90% of YE flights are scheduled events. For a
chapter member to just fly three kids in an extended family on a
Saturday becomes such with a phone call or email to EAA. Why?
Because EAA insurance coverage only partially covers you if at all
for an ad hoc flight on your own. To get self-protection of the
full $1 million, follow simple rules. For an unfavorable fatal
rate, we'd be looking for about 5-6 more cases where the fact of a
fatal ad hoc, YE flight among the 10% didn't turn up in the
investigation. Highly improbable beyond the fact that on those
flights you likely know the parents, like of the neighbor's kid,
and act very responsibly.

Fred F.