Amid all of the latest headlines about airline accidents overseas and a few troubling incidents nearer to house, it’s simple to overlook that industrial air journey has by no means been safer.
True, 2024 was the worst yr for air security since 2018, largely as a result of excessive loss of life toll in a single accident—the crash of a Jeju Air 737 in Muan, South Korea, on December 29, which killed 179 out the 181 folks aboard. The accident is below investigation and the excessive casualty fee was probably attributable to an uncommon confluence of things, which is why consultants warning in opposition to drawing sweeping conclusions based mostly on a single yr. Any evaluation should absorb a myriad of things. In one other deadly accident on Christmas Day, an Azerbaijan Air flight was reportedly downed by Russian air protection methods over Kazakhstan. Remarkably, 29 out of the 67 passengers and crew survived, nevertheless it nonetheless raised questions in regards to the dangers to civilian plane flying into battle zones.
That mentioned, deadly air crashes are nonetheless extraordinarily uncommon, thanks largely to main enhancements in expertise and crew coaching through the years (usually prompted by main accidents, equivalent to TWA 800 in 1996 and Air France 447 in 2009).
Final yr, there have been 11 deadly air accidents, with a complete of 318 folks killed, among the many almost 37 million flights that criss-crossed the globe. That’s up from 2023, one of many most secure years for flying in historical past, with just one deadly crash involving a turboprop airplane wherein 72 folks perished. However it’s nonetheless far lower than the 556 individuals who perished in industrial airline crashes in 2018.
And compared with driving, air journey is palms down the safer option to get from level A to level B. In 2024, there have been roughly 34,000 deaths from highway accidents within the USA alone.
John Cox, CEO of aviation consulting agency Security Working Programs and a longtime pilot, says a tradition of robust authorities oversight is crucial when evaluating an airline’s total report. “Decide your airline rigorously,” he says. “Simply because the fare is low, doesn’t imply it’s your best option.”
Certainly, not all airways and governments have the identical excessive stage of vigilance in relation to security practices. For many who need to guarantee they’re flying with the most secure service, right here’s how the world’s airways stack up.
How the world’s most secure airways are ranked
Every year, the Australian aviation security and product evaluate web site AirlineRatings.com ranks the most secure airways based mostly on a seven-point ranking system. The corporate displays 385 airways worldwide and its methodology considers components that embrace accidents which have occurred previously 5 years, critical incidents (these with the potential for a catastrophic end result) previously two years, private and non-private security audits, and the age of the fleet. Every airline is rated on a scale of 1 to seven “stars”; a service’s rating additionally considers the variety of passengers flown and the variety of sectors (every takeoff and touchdown), which tends to favor airways that function a excessive proportion of long-haul flights.
In 2025, the world’s most secure airways rating is as soon as once more topped by two antipodean champs, Air New Zealand, which claims the No. 1 spot for the second yr in a row, and Australian flag service Qantas (which has ranked No. 1 in 7 out of the previous 11 years, with the rankings relationship again to 2013). Of the highest 25, 5 are U.S. airways, with the remainder hailing from Canada, Western Europe, the Center East, and Asia. There’s additionally a separate listing for low-cost carriers, which this yr consists of 5 U.S. firms as nicely, together with JetBlue and Southwest.
The world’s 25 most secure airways
- Air New Zealand
- Qantas
- Cathay Pacific; Qatar Airways; Emirates (three-way tie)
- Virgin Australia
- Etihad Airways
- All Nippon Airways (ANA)
- EVA Air
- Korean Air
- Alaska Airways
- Turkish Airways
- TAP Air Portugal
- Hawaiian Airways
- American Airways
- Scandinavian Airways (SAS)
- British Airways
- Iberia
- Finnair
- Lufthansa/Swiss
- Japan Airways (JAL)
- Air Canada
- Delta Air Strains
- Vietnam Airways
- United Airways
The 25 most secure low-cost airways
- Hong Kong Categorical
- Jetstar Group
- Ryanair
- EasyJet
- Frontier Airways
- AirAsia
- Wizz Air
- VietJet Air
- Southwest Airways
- Volaris
- Flydubai
- Norwegian
- Vueling
- Jet2
- Solar Nation Airways
- WestJet
- JetBlue Airways
- Air Arabia
- IndiGo
- Eurowings
- Allegiant Air
- Cebu Pacific
- ZipAir
- SKY Airline
- Air Baltic
So, what does this all imply for shoppers? Even representatives at Airline Scores concede that the variations amongst airways in relation to security might be minuscule. In spite of everything, most main international airways—not simply those who make the highest 25—usually rating seven stars total, with different particulars, such because the age of the fleet, finally influencing the place the service lands on the listing.
And whereas the listing tends to principally characteristic the identical airways from yr to yr, there have been two new carriers on the highest 25 listing this yr, Iberia and Vietnam Airways, and two stunning absences, Singapore Airways and KLM. Airline Scores CEO Sharon Petersen famous that whereas the latter two carriers “stay exceptionally protected and retain their seven-star security ranking, they only narrowly missed out on a spot this yr attributable to incidents that occurred,” together with a extreme episode of turbulence aboard Singapore Airways.
And an airline might be excluded for quite a lot of causes: On the low-cost listing, for instance, Spirit Airways, which has a ranking of seven stars, was lacking from the funds airline roster as a result of it filed for Chapter 11 chapter safety in November 2024 to restructure its funds.
Customers are suggested to test every particular person service’s rating at airlineratings.com/airways to see the place their airline stands and to have the ability to make an knowledgeable choice about flight security.
This story was initially revealed in November 2023 and was up to date on January 17, 2025, to incorporate present data.