Good news for commercial airline travelers

January 4, 2012

Flying on commercial jets last year was twice as safe as it was 15 years ago, reports The Australian.

As airlines recorded the lowest-ever fatal accident and passenger death rates, aviation insurers recorded the lowest payout for aircraft losses and legal liabilities in seven years.

The number of fatal accidents on jet and turbo prop aircraft dropped from 28 to 25, and fatalities fell from 828 to 497.

As planes have become safer and procedures have been refined, the airline industry has seen decade averages drop from 40 fatal accidents a year in 1970-79 to 27.3 fatal accidents in 2000-2009.

Both the fatality rate and the cost to insurers have been cut almost in half.  The equivalent averages for fatalities have almost halved from 1467.4 to 792.3. The cost to insurers almost halved from $2.14 billion in 2010 to $1.18 billion last year.

Paul Hayes, director for international aviation consultancy, Ascend, said that last year was the safest year ever for airlines, "Airlines are getting safer--and more quickly than they're expanding. On average, overall airlines operations are now twice as safe as they were 15 years ago."

A Hewa Bora Airways Boeing 727-100 crash in the Congo was the worst crash of the year. The airplane undershot the runway on July 8, killing 70 passengers and four crew members.

Does this news make you feel safer on commercial airlines?

If you or someone you know has had his or her safety compromised on a commercial airline, the commercial aviation lawyers at Nurenberg, Paris, Heller & McCarthy may be able to help.