The aviation industry delivered a solid safety performance last year, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

Although the number of accidents in commercial aviation fell compared to 2024, the number of fatalities rose to 394, compared to 244 in the previous year, mainly due to two spectacular accidents in India and the United States.

The overall accident rate fell to 1.32 per million flights, compared to 1.42 in 2024. This equates to approximately one accident per 759, 646 flights.

38.7 million flights, 8 fatal accidents

The commercial aviation industry operated approximately 38.7 million flights in 2025, with 51 accidents recorded (down from 54 in 2024). Despite a decline in the number of accidents, the number of fatal accidents rose to 8, up from 7 in 2024.

According to IATA, the sharp increase in the number of fatalities – from 244 to 394 – is due to two specific accidents, namely the crash of the Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner in Ahmedabad in June, in which 241 people on board the aircraft were killed, and the collision between a Bombardier CRJ700 belonging to PSA, a subsidiary of Amercan Airlines, and a military helicopter on Washington DC on January 29, in which 64 people on board the aircraft were killed.

Deficiencies in airport facilities are a major incident factor

For the second time in history, there were no accidents worldwide due to Loss of Control (LOC-I) during flight. This is very positive, as LOC-I has historically been the leading cause of fatalities.

Most accidents in 2025 were related to tail strikes, landing gear events, runway excursions, and ground damage.

The report emphasizes that deficiencies in airport facilities, such as obstacles near the runway or insufficient markings, partly contributed to 16% of accidents.

Africa remains a sore point

And although jet safety in Africa has improved dramatically, the region continues to have the world’s highest accident rate – 7.86 per million flights. The safety of turboprop aircraft in this region is a particular concern; their accident rate rose to 14.96.

The Middle East and North Africa, on the other hand, is performing exceptionally well and has not had a single fatal accident since 2019.

Air travel remains the safest means of transport for long distances

IATA Director Willie Walsh also emphasized that aviation is becoming increasingly safer in the long term. A decade ago (2012-2016), there was one fatal accident per 3.5 million flights. In the period 2021-2025, this has improved to one fatal accident per 5.6 million flights.

The risk of dying on a commercial flight is therefore extremely low. According to 2025 data, the fatality risk is approximately 0.03. This means that, on average, a passenger would have to fly every day for 103,239 years to experience a fatal accident.

By comparison, the car remains by far the most dangerous means of transport. The risk of a fatal accident per kilometer traveled is about 100 times greater for a car than for an airplane. For a motorcycle, the risk is even 3,000 times greater than for flying.

Trains come closest to the safety of airplanes. In some years, trains are even safer per trip, but over long distances, airplanes win.