What are the world’s safest airlines for 2017?
AirlineRatings.com says Qantas is the world`s safest airline for 2017 for the fourth year in a row. AirlineRatings.com, the world’s only safety and product rating website, has announced its top twenty safest airlines and top ten safest low-cost airlines for 2017 from the 425 it monitors.
Launched in 2013, it monitors 425 global airlines, compiling its list of the world’s safest airlines based on factors ranging from airline records, profitability and fleet age to audits from aviation’s governing bodies and government reports.
Its 20 safest airlines, in alphabetical order, are:
- Air New Zealand
- Alaska Airlines
- All Nippon Airways
- British Airways
- Cathay Pacific Airways
- Delta Air Lines
- Etihad Airways
- EVA Air
- Finnair
- Hawaiian Airlines
- Japan Airlines
- KLM
- Lufthansa
- Qantas
- SAS
- Singapore Airlines
- Swiss air
- United Airlines
- Virgin Atlantic
- Virgin Australia
In making its selections AirlineRatings.com takes into account numerous factors that include; audits from aviation’s governing bodies and lead associations; government audits; airline’s crash and serious incident record; profitability and fleet age. AirlineRating.com’s editorial team, one of the world’s most awarded and experienced, also examined each airline’s fleet history and its track record of initiating new safety technology to arrive at its top 20 safest airlines.
- Aer Lingus
- Flybe
- HK Express
- Jetblue
- Jetstar Australia
- Jetstar Asia
- Thomas Cook
- Virgin America
- Vueling
- Westjet
The carriers on the list hail from Asia, North America, Australia, and Europe, with no carriers from Africa and South America making the cut. This top-20 includes only mainline carriers. Low-cost or boutique carriers such as JetBlue, Virgin America, Norwegian, and EasyJet were considered for a separate ranking.
Despite several high-profile crashes, 2016 was one of the safest years in aviation history, according to the Aviation Safety Network (ASN), which maintains an independent database of all air travel incidents.
19 fatal accidents last year resulted in 325 deaths (or one death per 10,769,230 travellers), it says. Only 2013 were fewer deaths, with 265.
The deadliest year in aviation history was 1972, according to ASN, during which 2,370 deaths and 72 fatal accidents were recorded.
Of the 425 airlines surveyed for 2017 by AirlineRatings.com, 148 achieve its top seven-star safety ranking – but almost 50 have just three stars or less.
This year, 14 airlines have earned just a single star – all of which are from Afghanistan, Indonesia, Nepal or Surinam.