Brasília, January 29, 2004 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - The number of accidents involving airplanes in Brazil was halved in the last 13 years. The data were announced yesterday (28) by the Minister of Defense, José Viegas.

According to the Minister, the aircraft fleet grew 25%. For small planes, the index of accidents in the country shows results that are better than those in developed countries like the United States. For large aircraft, the average is 0.82 accidents per million take-offs, 38% better than the global average.

The Minister also said that the Civil Aviation Department did a study that revealed that security norms in Brazil satisfy 90% of international specifications The world average is slightly over 70% compliance with the specifications. (DAS)