Aviation Risk - Safer Skies

By Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty

Safety in the aviation sector is of critical importance. Despite a record number of passengers, statistics show that flying has never been safer. Between 1959 and 2017 there were 29,298 recorded deaths from 500 global commercial passenger jet fleet events. However, between 2008 and 2017, there were 2,199 fatalities from 37 events, or less than 8 per cent of the total number. In 2017, for the first time in at least 60 years of aviation, there were no fatalities on a commercial airline. Even 2018, which saw a total of 15 fatal airliner accidents, ranks as the third safest year ever. The lifetime chances of a person dying in a commercial aviation accident are extremely unlikely compared with other forms of transport such as a car or bicycle accident, as well as other more unexpected scenarios such as accidental gun discharge or dog attack.