Aviation Safety Achieves Unprecedented Success, Yet Challenges Persist During Critical Phases
Recent findings reveal that aviation experienced its safest year in 2023, with record-low fatality risks and overall accident rates. Despite this remarkable achievement, challenges during critical phases continue to pose significant concerns.
This year has not had a good start in terms of aviation safety, marked by a runway collision at Tokyo's Haneda airport and a door plug incident on an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 in January. In addition, there have been four fatal accidents involving regional and business aircraft in the weeks following these incidents.
Despite these recent events, it is important to note that commercial airplanes continue to be the safest mode of travel. A new report released on February 28 indicates that 2023 was, in fact, the safest year on record for flying, according to several key safety metrics.
In its 60th year, the IATA Annual Safety Report, compiled by the International Air Transport Association, has been monitoring the progress of commercial aviation safety since 1964.
In 2023, the data recorded a total of 37 million flights (including both jet and turboprop), showing a 17% increase from the previous year. Despite this rise, 2023 marked the lowest fatality risk and "all accident" rate ever recorded. According to the IATA report, "At this level of safety, on average a person would have to travel by air every day for 103,239 years to experience a fatal accident."
There were no fatal accidents or hull losses involving passenger jet aircraft last year, but the tragedy of Yeti Airlines Flight 691, a turboprop plane that crashed in Nepal in January with the loss of 72 lives, confirms that we can never take safety for granted. The industry must always strive to improve.
“This is what we have done throughout our history. And we will continue to make flying ever safer,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.
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Regional breakdown
Jets at Palm Beach International Airport in Florida. North America has maintained a fatality risk of zero since 2020, says IATA.
Jets at Palm Beach International Airport in Florida. North America has maintained a fatality risk of zero since 2020, says IATA.
The 2023 “all accident” rate showed improvement in all regions except for North America and Asia Pacific. By mid-March, there were already seven runway incursions reported on US runways, highlighting a number of close calls where planes obstructed each other's path on the runway.
Europe has successfully maintained a fatality risk of zero since 2018. However, the majority of non-fatal airplane incidents in the region were attributed to landing gear collapse. According to the IATA, more than half of all accidents in the period of 2014-2023 occurred during the critical phases of flight, particularly during landing and take-off.
Africa experienced the highest accident rate in 2023, with 6.38 accidents per million sectors. Despite this, there has been a notable improvement from the previous year, and the region has not had any fatal accidents since 2020.
North Asia's safety record stood out as the best in the world, with a significant decrease in accident rate from 0.45 to 0.00 accidents per million sectors in 2023. Additionally, the fatality risk plummeted from 0.23 in 2022 to 0.00 in 2023.
The incident at Tokyo Haneda in January 2024 will have an impact on North Asia's safety performance for the year. Despite this, the Japan Airlines crew received praise for their exceptional implementation of safety protocols, effectively averting a potential disaster and preventing a much larger tragedy from occurring.
Editor's P/S:
While the recent incidents, including the runway collision in Tokyo and the door plug incident on an Alaska Airlines aircraft, have raised concerns about aviation safety, the latest report from the International Air Transport Association (IATA) provides a reassuring perspective. According to the report, 2023 was the safest year on record for flying, with no fatal accidents involving passenger jet aircraft and a record-low "all accident" rate. This is a testament to the continuous efforts of the aviation industry to improve safety standards and protocols.
Despite the overall positive trend, the report highlights the need for vigilance and ongoing improvements. The seven runway incursions reported in the US in mid-March and the landing gear collapse incidents in Europe serve as reminders of the importance of adhering to safety procedures and investing in advanced technology to minimize risks. The aviation industry must remain committed to innovation, training, and collaboration to ensure the continued safety of air travel.
