09/02/2011 (Agence Europe) - Africa lagging behind on aviation security. Safety in air travel has considerably increased over the last 40 years in all areas of the world except Africa, says a Financial Times article published on Tuesday 8 February. According to this newspaper, civil aviation is one of the least dangerous modes of transport: in the US, there are fewer air crash victims that people who die in pleasure boat accidents. According to statistics provided in the newspaper, the chance of dying in a plane crash is one in 1 million, as opposed to around 27 in a million a few years ago. Statistically, most fatalities occur on the African continent, with 6.3 accidents per million flights during the first decade of this century, as opposed to 5.3, forty years ago. This figure currently stands at 1.6 in Latin America, 0.3% in North America and the EU (European Free Trade Area). The lack of airport infrastructure, resources and trained personnel are the main reasons for this situation. (A.By./transl.fl)