Michael wrote:

Frankly, I think that's only true if we accept that the aircraft are
not going to improve. Highway fatality rates have improved
dramatically in the last few decades, and it is generally accepted
that the improvements are almost wholly due to the cars, not the
drivers.

All of the improvements in automobile safety come with a weight penalty. There's not
a whole lot of room to improve aircraft in this way without cutting the carrying
capacity of each plane by significant amounts.

George Patterson
In Idaho, tossing a rattlesnake into a crowded room is felony assault.
In Tennessee, it's evangelism.