Aviation takes an iterative approach to safety. The logic is that even the most thorough analysis and testing will not uncover all the "unknown unknowns" of a new technology or design. Take the fuel tank nitrogen-inerting system on the 787, the first commercial airliner designed from the start with this safety technology. It is there because, on July 17,1996, TWA 800, a Boeing 747 en route from New York to Paris, blew apart in mid-air due to an explosion in the center-wing fuel tank. To this day, the NTSB has not determined the source of ignition, yet it has pushed the FAA relentlessly to eliminate the possibility of a potentially explosive fuel-air combination in tanks.
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