Resulting List Looks Like No Other In Aviation

As the year ends, it's natural for news organizations to huddle and decide which stories most touched our lives over the past 12 months. Some news organizations, including ANN, put much thought into this process, and use subjective criteria in choosing candidates for the list. But the National Business Aviation Association has tried a more objective, 21st-Century method of summing up 2011 - pulling web statistics which show which stories from its weekly newsletter were clicked the most.

So, how did this list turn out, compared to the ones created by human committees? Where did Randy Babbitt's ignominious resignation, the sale of Cirrus Aircraft to the Chinese, Piper's suspension of the Altaire jet project, and LightSquared's battle with the GPS community land on NBAA's Top 20?

Um....actually, none of them made the list.

Instead, viewed under the harsh, compact fluorescent light of click-through counts, the biggest stories of the year for NBAA newsletter readers were spellbinders such as "IRS Adjusts 2011 Air Transportation Excise Tax Rates," at number 20, and "Pilots Reminded to Observe New ATC Phraseology" at number 13.

NBAA readers found Reduced Vertical Separation Minimum issues particularly riveting, with four RVSM stories making the list, including the single most interesting story of the year - "What's Involved in New RVSM Height-Monitoring Requirements?"

Are business aviation enthusiasts really this geeked out? Or, is counting click-throughs simply not a good way to figure out what really mattered to the world over the last 12 months?

NBAA has some fine print at the bottom of its list which asks, "See any surprises on the list? What hot topics were missing? NBAA welcomes your feedback..."

It's really tempting to suggest "Carbon Taxes and You" as a missing hot topic. Carbon tax stories are always the bridesmaid, clearly the Susan Lucci of business aviation stories. Perhaps they'll be considered for a career achievement award next year.

FMI: www.nbaa.org/news/update/2011/most-clicked-news-2011.php