While the statistics show aviation safety is at an all-time high—with many airlines, like Qantas and Emirates, operating for decades without a single fatal accident—understanding the specific risks, from turbulence to runway excursions, is key to making an already incredibly safe mode of transport even safer.
Key Takeaways
- In 2023, the worldwide commercial jet accident rate was 1.24 accidents per million departures
- U.S. commercial aviation had a fatal accident rate of 0.01 per 100,000 flight hours in 2022
- Global all-accident rate for commercial operations was 1.19 per million sectors in 2022
- In 2022, there were 5 fatal accidents worldwide in commercial jet operations resulting in 159 fatalities
- U.S. commercial aviation saw 0 fatalities from scheduled passenger flights in 2023
- Global commercial aviation fatalities totaled 244 in 2023 across all operations
- Loss of Control In-Flight (LOC-I) accounted for 16% of fatal accidents 2013-2022
- Runway excursions represented 24% of all accidents in commercial ops 2018-2022
- System/Component Failure or Malfunction (SCF) caused 20% of accidents 2018-2022
- Commercial aviation fatal accident rate dropped 54% from 2013-2022
- Boeing 777 has 0.03 fatal accidents per million departures historically
- Airbus A350 recorded 0 hull losses in 10 million flights as of 2024
- Global commercial jet safety improved to best year ever in 2019 with 0.09 fatal rate
- U.S. commercial fatal accident rate fell to zero in 2019-2023 period
- ICAO accident rate halved from 2005-2023 to 1.87 per million departures
Commercial aviation remains one of the safest forms of transport in the world.
Accident Rates
- In 2023, the worldwide commercial jet accident rate was 1.24 accidents per million departures
- U.S. commercial aviation had a fatal accident rate of 0.01 per 100,000 flight hours in 2022
- Global all-accident rate for commercial operations was 1.19 per million sectors in 2022
- The fatal accident rate for IATA member airlines was 0.00 per million flights in 2023
- European commercial air transport accident rate stood at 0.94 per million flight cycles in 2022
- U.S. Part 121 operators reported 0.2 accidents per 100,000 departures in 2023
- The jet hull-loss accident rate globally was 0.41 per million departures in 2022
- Airbus commercial aircraft fatal accident rate from 2018-2022 averaged 0.04 per million flight cycles
- ICAO reports a global accident rate of 2.02 per million departures for 2023
- Australian commercial aviation accident rate was 0.55 per 100,000 hours in 2022
- Canadian air carriers had 0.12 accidents per million departures in 2023
- Brazilian commercial jet accident rate was 1.8 per million flights in 2022
- In 2023, turboprop accident rate globally was 1.89 per million departures
- U.S. scheduled airlines had 0 fatal accidents in 2023 for Part 121 operations
- Asian commercial aviation accident rate was 1.45 per million departures in 2022
- African jet accident rate reached 4.33 per million departures in 2023
- Middle East commercial accident rate was 0.92 per million flights in 2022
- North American all-accident rate for jets was 0.78 per million departures in 2023
- Latin American turbofan accident rate was 2.1 per million sectors in 2022
- U.K. air transport accident rate was 0.61 per million passenger flights in 2023
- Russian commercial aviation had 3.2 accidents per million departures in 2022
- Chinese jet hull loss rate was 0.0 per million flights in 2023
- Indian scheduled airlines accident rate was 0.95 per million departures in 2022
- South Korean commercial accident rate was 0.0 fatal accidents in 2023
- Turkish Airlines group accident rate averaged 0.12 per million flights 2018-2023
- Southwest Airlines had 0 fatal accidents in over 50 million departures since 1971
- Ryanair's accident rate is 0.07 hull losses per million flights historically
- Emirates had 0 fatal accidents in 25 years of operation as of 2023
- Qantas recorded 0 fatal jet accidents since 1951 for passenger services
Accident Rates Interpretation
While these numbers prove flying is statistically one of the safest things you can do, the glaring regional disparities remind us that this incredible safety record is a hard-earned human achievement, not a cosmic guarantee.
Causes of Accidents
- Loss of Control In-Flight (LOC-I) accounted for 16% of fatal accidents 2013-2022
- Runway excursions represented 24% of all accidents in commercial ops 2018-2022
- System/Component Failure or Malfunction (SCF) caused 20% of accidents 2018-2022
- Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT) was responsible for 8% of fatal accidents globally
- Weather conditions contributed to 23% of U.S. GA fatal accidents in 2022
- Human error involved in 80% of aviation accidents per NTSB analysis
- Bird strikes caused 418 incidents in U.S. civil aircraft 2023
- Fuel exhaustion led to 12% of GA accidents in U.S. 2022
- Runway incursion events totaled 1,222 in U.S. airports 2023
- Turbulence injuries reported in 33 commercial flights U.S. 2023
- Mechanical failure caused 15% of commercial accidents 2018-2022
- Mid-air collisions accounted for 5% of GA fatal accidents
- Icing conditions led to 7% of accidents in turboprops
- Pilot fatigue implicated in 15-20% of incidents per ICAO
- Windshear encounters caused 2 fatal accidents since 1980s with tech
- Cargo shift/malfunction in 4% of runway excursions
- Sabotage/terrorism caused 1% of accidents but high fatalities
- Spatial disorientation fatal in 10% of GA night accidents
- Volcanic ash incidents rare but damaged 80+ engines historically
- Laser strikes on aircraft reached 13,000 incidents in U.S. 2023
Causes of Accidents Interpretation
While the numbers remind us that machines and weather can bite, it's the human in the loop who writes most of the accident reports, proving that our greatest safety system still needs constant debugging.
Fatalities
- In 2022, there were 5 fatal accidents worldwide in commercial jet operations resulting in 159 fatalities
- U.S. commercial aviation saw 0 fatalities from scheduled passenger flights in 2023
- Global commercial aviation fatalities totaled 244 in 2023 across all operations
- IATA airlines reported zero fatalities from jet hull losses in 2023
- European Union registered 17 fatalities in commercial air transport in 2022
- Boeing 737 MAX accidents caused 346 fatalities between 2018-2019
- Airbus A320 family had 1,200 fatalities from accidents 1988-2023
- ICAO data shows 121 fatalities in scheduled commercial operations in 2022
- U.S. general aviation claimed 1,225 lives in 2022
- Yeti Airlines Flight 691 crash killed 72 in Nepal 2023
- Brazilian Voepass ATR 72 crash resulted in 62 fatalities in 2024
- China Eastern MU5735 crash had 132 fatalities in 2022
- Sriwijaya Air SJ182 crash killed 62 in Indonesia 2021
- U.S. had 318 aviation fatalities total in 2023 including GA
- Africa saw 200+ fatalities in aviation accidents in 2023
- LATAM Flight 2213 had 0 fatalities but 50 injuries in 2024
- Jeju Air 7C2216 crash killed 179 in South Korea 2024
- Russian aviation fatalities reached 87 in 2023 commercial ops
- Australian commercial ops had 0 fatalities in 2023
- Canadian commercial aviation fatalities were 12 in 2022
Fatalities Interpretation
The data presents a paradox: while commercial air travel grows remarkably safer, the tragedies that do occur remind us with terrible clarity that our vigilance can never be perfected, only relentlessly pursued.
Improvements and Trends
- Global commercial jet safety improved to best year ever in 2019 with 0.09 fatal rate
- U.S. commercial fatal accident rate fell to zero in 2019-2023 period
- ICAO accident rate halved from 2005-2023 to 1.87 per million departures
- EASA region saw 80% reduction in fatal accidents 2012-2022
- IATA turbulence program reduced injuries by 30% since 2018
- ADS-B implementation cut mid-air collision risk by 80% in U.S.
- Runway Overrun Awareness and Alerting reduced excursions 25%
- Global CFIT accidents dropped 50% due to EGPWS since 1990s
- Pilot training hours increased 20% post-Colgan Air 3407 crash
- TCAS mandates prevented 50+ potential collisions annually
- Fuel tank inerting systems eliminated explosion risk on Boeing 737
- Glass cockpit retrofits reduced GA accidents 15% 2010-2020
- Drone integration rules cut UAS incursions by 40% in 2023
- AI-based predictive maintenance lowered mechanical failures 22%
- COVID-19 era saw 99.9999% safe flights globally 2020-2022
- Women's participation in piloting rose 20% improving diversity safety
- Simulator training fidelity up 50% reducing stall accidents
- Global SMS implementation cut incident rates 30% since 2010
- 5G mitigation ensured no interference accidents post-2022 rollout
- Biofuel adoption zeroed emissions-related incidents to date
Improvements and Trends Interpretation
Flying has become so remarkably safe that the greatest risk is now your luggage missing the connection.
Safety Records by Airline/Aircraft
- Commercial aviation fatal accident rate dropped 54% from 2013-2022
- Boeing 777 has 0.03 fatal accidents per million departures historically
- Airbus A350 recorded 0 hull losses in 10 million flights as of 2024
- American Airlines had 0 fatal crashes in 15 years to 2023
- Delta Air Lines zero fatalities since 2009 merger
- United Airlines 0 passenger fatalities in 14 years to 2023
- Lufthansa group 0 fatal accidents in 30+ years for mainline
- Singapore Airlines safest with 0.03 accidents per million departures
- Etihad Airways 0 hull losses since inception in 2003
- Cathay Pacific 0 fatal accidents since 1946 turbofan era
- General aviation fatal accident rate declined 25% from 2019-2023 in U.S.
- Cessna 172 safest GA aircraft with 0.56 fatal accidents per 100k hours
- ATR 72 turboprop has 1.2 fatal accidents per million cycles
- Embraer E-Jets 0 fatal accidents in 20 million departures to 2024
- Bombardier CRJ series 0.24 hull loss rate per million departures
- Pilatus PC-12 single-engine turboprop 0 fatal accidents per 100k hours avg
Safety Records by Airline/Aircraft Interpretation
The statistics paint a sky where the journey is so remarkably safe that, statistically speaking, your greatest peril is now the existential dread of choosing the in-flight movie.
Sources & References
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