Don't we have close to 10 fatalities in a typical year, so this year is
about average?

Assuming that there are 5000 active pilots in the US, that gives a
typical pilot a 1/500 chance of getting killed each year, or about 20
times higher than the chance of getting killed in an auto crash.


That assumes all pilots are of the same skill level and safety
adherence. So if the fatalities are happening to above-average pilots,
the chances are probably worse.