The landing of Delta Air Lines flight 4819 in Toronto, which ended with the aircraft upside down, is one of the most frightening videos involving airplane accidents recently. Fortunately, there were no fatalities.
The forced landing on Monday (17) does not seem to be an isolated incident, especially after last month’s collision of an American Airlines plane with a U.S. Army helicopter that left 67 dead. It seems that the skies are becoming more dangerous.
Is it true?
Take a look at the preliminary data from January from the National Transportation Safety Board.
It seems that last month recorded one of the lowest numbers of airplane accidents across the United States when combining private and commercial flights. Most of the 62 accidents occurred with private flights, and this number was 18 less than the 80 recorded in January 2024.
In fact, if the preliminary numbers hold, January 2025 will surpass the previous record for the lowest total number of accidents, with eight fewer than the record of 70 accidents in January 2012.
Ten of the accidents in January 2025 were, unfortunately, fatal, and one of those fatal incidents involved a commercial airplane.
Obviously, any number above zero is too many when we talk about people’s lives, but 10 overall is an incredibly low number, historically speaking.
Commercial air travel in the United States is safer than ever. There have been fewer fatalities involving commercial airplanes in the last 15 years than in any other 15-year period. For every mile traveled, commercial airplanes are much safer than cars.
Of course, what stands out at the beginning of this year is the record of accidents involving commercial airplanes. The vast majority of recorded accidents involve small private planes, which do not receive much media coverage. Traveling in a small private plane is significantly less safe.
But one or two accidents do not say much about an industry when you have about 9 million commercial flights operated by U.S. airlines each year. In other words, one or two accidents in a given year are not statistically significant.
No mode of transportation will be 100% safe. But it is undoubtedly necessary to remain vigilant to ensure that air travel is as safe as possible, after all, the likelihood of fatal accidents involving many people is higher compared to other forms of transportation.
Still, the numbers show that air travel has become even safer in recent years.
Source: CNN