Helicopters attract unusually close maintenance and regulatory scrutiny because failures can become catastrophic quickly. Many rotorcraft leave service through accidents rather than orderly retirement, although the proportion quoted here is an informal recollection rather than a sourced statistic. Against other vertical-lift aircraft rather than conventional fixed-wing transports, the V-22 Osprey is described as comparatively safe. The comparison class matters, and the off-the-cuff figure should be treated cautiously rather than used to claim that rotorcraft or tiltrotors are low-risk.
Notable Point · 2:43:55-2:44:53
Helicopter risk changes the Osprey comparison
Rotorcraft failure modes and accident-heavy service histories make tiltrotor safety look different when the comparison class is other vertical-lift aircraft.