According to statistics, airplanes are the safest form of transportation. But when it comes to safety standards, there are big differences between airlines.
(Photo: dpa)
frankfurt The strong recovery in air traffic following the COVID-19 pandemic has been a masterpiece for everyone in the industry. Because there is still a shortage of manpower. People boarding a plane ask themselves: Is my airline safe? How safe is flying?
The answer is: Even after the COVID-19 pandemic, airplanes are still a safe form of transportation. This is illustrated by calculations by the Federal Association of the German Aviation Industry (BDL). Thus, in the 1970s, there was 1 fatality for every 264,000 passengers. By 2022, this ratio will reach 1:16 million.
In 2023, the aviation industry has so far been free from major disasters. The Aviation Safety Network lists 106 fatalities between the start of the year and July 11 of this year. Accidents with business and private jets have also been recorded. In the deadliest air disaster to date, a regional jet operated by Yet Airlines crashed in Pokhara, Nepal, killing 72 people.
Jacdec data: These are the least safe airlines right now
However, there are large differences in the safety standards of various airlines. The Jacdec air accident agency analyzes how safe airlines are and rates them with a safety index. The data is updated 3 times a day throughout the year. Not only did they take into account the total loss and number of victims over the past 30 years. Frame conditions for individual airlines also played a role, such as the uncertain political situation. 100% is the highest value even the top airlines can’t match.
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According to Jacdec, Handelsblatt records the worst safety performance of the major airlines. For this purpose, those premium and low-cost providers were evaluated, which are currently categorized as “severe security flaws” and “serious security flaws” in the Jacdec statistics. These are then ranked according to the safety index.
No. 13: Pobeda (Russia)
(Photo: IMAGO/ITAR-TASS/Sipa USA)
Pobeda is a low-cost airline and a wholly owned subsidiary of Aeroflot. The airline, which was only founded in 2014, actually has a solid flying record. So far, there has been no total loss. However, following the attacks in Ukraine, Russia’s aviation regulator allowed the national airline to fly Western aircraft that no longer had any alleged evidence of airworthiness. The European Union has therefore blacklisted the airline from taking off and landing there.
No. 12: Spice Jet (India)
(Photo: dapd)
Indian low-cost carrier Spice Jet was launched in 2004 as Royal Airways. The main shareholder is Indian investor Ajay Singh. Jacdec said there had been 26 serious accidents in the past 10 years and a total of three losses over 30 years. As a result, one person died. In early July 2019, a Boeing 737 skidded off the runway while landing in Mumbai under adverse weather conditions. No one in the car was injured.
No. 11: Mahan Air (Iran)
(Photo: imago images/Aviation-Stock)
Although Mahan Air was founded in 1991 by the son of then-President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, it is a private airline. Due to the sanctions, the airline has had to rely mostly on used aircraft. Jacdec sees fleet aging as a risk; the average flight time for these aircraft is 27.8 years. There have been a total of 3 losses in the past 30 years, but no lives have been lost. Another risk is the political situation in the country.
Tenth place: Vietnam Airlines (Vietnam)
(Photo: Imago)
Vietnam Airlines is the country’s flag carrier. It belongs to the SkyTeam alliance surrounding Lufthansa rival Air France-KLM. Jacdec said there had been 18 serious incidents in the past 10 years. In 1997, a Tupolev 134 crashed while flying to Pochentong Airport in Phnom Penh. Of the 66 passengers, only a one-year-old baby survived.
Ninth place: China Eastern Airlines (China)
(Photo: IMAGO/VCG)
Shanghai-based China Eastern Airlines began operations in 1988. The airline has suffered sweeping losses twice in the past 30 years, killing 137 people. On March 21, 2022, a Boeing 737 crashed while landing near Wuzhou City. The plane fell from nearly 9,000 meters in just one and a half minutes, recovered briefly, and crashed into the forest. All 132 passengers were killed.
Eighth place: Pegasus Airlines (Türkiye)
Pegasus Airlines has been operating flights since 1990. The low-cost carrier also flies to German airports and relies heavily on tourist traffic. Since 1993, there have been two gross losses. On October 5, 2020, a Boeing 737 overshot the runway while landing in Istanbul. The plane slid down the ramp, hit a wall and disintegrated. The accident killed three of the 183 passengers and injured many others.
Seventh place: Air India (India)
Air India has long been state-owned but was taken over in October 2021 by Sons of Tata, the holding company of Tata Industries conglomerate. To realize its ambitious plans, Air India recently placed an order for 470 new aircraft. The Jacdec database lists 23 serious incidents in the past decade. The last total loss was in 2014, and no one has died in an accident in the past 30 years. However, India’s limited infrastructure is a risk factor, Jacdec said.
Sixth place: Aeroflot (Russia)
Aeroflot was founded in 1992. The airline is majority-owned by the state. Safety records since 1993 show a total of 12 accidents in which 136 people were killed. On May 5, 2019, a Sukhoi Superjet 100 caught fire during an emergency landing in Moscow. 41 people have been unable to save themselves. Like all Aeroflot airlines, Aeroflot has suffered from being unable to obtain spare parts for Western aircraft after it invaded Ukraine due to sanctions. This further increases the risk.
Fifth place: Ethiopian Airlines (Ethiopian Airlines)
Ethiopian Airlines is a Star Alliance member and flies to 125 destinations. Since 1993, the Ethiopian national airline’s safety record has recorded 18 serious incidents. On March 10, 2019, a Boeing 737 Max crashed after taking off from Addis Ababa, killing 157 people. The reason was the same as Lion Air Flight 610: the control software was poorly programmed and the pilots didn’t know enough about it.
Fourth place: EgyptAir (Egypt)
dpatopimages An EgyptAir Airbus A320 takes off from Istanbul Airport (Turkey) on April 24, 2011. An EgyptAir A320 flight from Paris to Cairo has been missing since the early hours of May 19, 2016. Photo: Christoph Schmidt/dpa (“Egyptian airliner missing – en route from Paris to Cairo” to dpa, May 19, 2016) +++(c) dpa – Bildfunk+++
(Photo: dpa)
EgyptAir has been operating since 1932. It is the national airline of Egypt. The airline is a member of the Star Alliance around Lufthansa. In the past 30 years, there have been five losses in total. On the evening of May 19, 2016, the company’s Airbus A320 crashed over the Mediterranean Sea, killing all 66 people on board. An attack was initially suspected, but French experts later blamed the fire on cigarettes in the cockpit.
Third place: Lion Air (Indonesia)
Indonesian airline Lion Air is frequently found with negative safety notices in the Jacdec database. The company, which was established in 2000, has suffered eight losses in the past 30 years, resulting in 214 deaths. In late October 2018, a Boeing 737 Max crashed in Indonesia due to overly aggressive programming of the control software. 189 people died. Jacdec experts pointed to extreme weather in the region as a further risk.
Second place: Pakistan International Airlines (Pakistan)
TOPSHOT – September 13, 2021 A Taliban fighter stands guard on a Pakistan International Airlines plane, the first commercial international flight to land since the Taliban returned to power last month, carrying passengers on September 13, 2021 Take off from Kabul Airport on 13th. (Photo by Karim SAHIB/AFP) (Photo by KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)
(Photo: AFP/Getty Images)
According to Jacdec, PIA has suffered a total of 11 losses over the past 30 years, resulting in 191 fatalities. In May 2020, the pilot of an Airbus A320 flew too high to Jinnah Airport in Karachi, despite repeated warnings from controllers. The plane crashed on landing. 97 prisoners died and only two survived. In addition, Pakistan’s infrastructure is weak and the political situation is unstable.
First place: UT Air (Russia)
UT Air has the lowest safety index. Jacdec has recorded 10 serious accidents with the Russian airline in the past decade. Over the past 30 years, there have been a total of seven losses, including 39 fatalities. The last major accident happened in 2020. While landing in Usinsk, the main landing gear broke and the plane skidded off the runway. All occupants survived.
Worst airlines in summary:
| place | airline | nation |
| 13. | Pobeda | Russia |
| 12. | spice jets | India |
| 11. | Mahan Air | Iran |
| 10 | Vietnam Airlines | Vietnam |
| 9. | China Eastern Airlines | China |
| eighth. | Pegasus Airlines | Türkiye |
| 7. | air india | India |
| 6. | Aeroflot | Russia |
| 5. | ethiopian airlines | Ethiopia |
| 4. | egyptair | Egypt |
| 3. | Lion Air | Indonesia |
| 2. | pakistan international airlines | Pakistan |
| 1. | UT Aviation | Russia |
more: Five charts showing changes in European air traffic
First published: 16 January 2020 at 11am (last updated: 17 July 2023 at 11am)