Flying remains the safest form of long-distance travel

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released this week its 2025 Annual Safety Report, demonstrating a solid year of safety performance.

In particular, the all-accident rate stood at 1.32 per million flights in 2025, equivalent to one accident per 759,646 flights. This was better than the 1.42 recorded in 2024, although slightly above the 2021-2025 five-year average of 1.27.

At the same time, there were 51 accidents in 2025 among 38.7m flights. That was fewer than the 54 accidents among 37.9m flights in 2024, but above the 2021-2025 five-year average of 44 accidents.

Moreover, there were eight fatal accidents in 2025. That was more than the seven fatal accidents recorded in 2024 and the five-year average of six fatal accidents.

In parallel, there were 394 onboard fatalities in 2025, more than the 244 fatalities reported in 2024 and the five-year average of 198.

Commenting on the findings, IATA director general Willie Walsh said that “flying is the safest form of long-distance travel” and that “accidents are extremely rare”.

He added that “each one reminds us to be even more focused on continuous improvement through global standards and collaboration guided by safety data”.

At the same time, he said that “the result of that effort is clear in how the five-year rolling average rate for fatal accidents has improved”.

As he noted, “a decade ago, the rate stood at one fatal accident for every 3.5m flights (2012-2016)”, whereas “today, it is one fatal accident for every 5.6m flights (2021-2025)”.

Walsh went on to say that “flying is so safe that even one accident among the nearly 40m flights operated annually moves the global data” and stressed that “every accident is, of course, one too many”. He added that “the goal for aviation remains zero accidents and zero fatalities”.

According to the report, the most common accidents in 2025 were tail strikes, landing gear events, runway excursions, and ground damage.

This, in turn, emphasises the importance of take-off, landing, and ground handling safety measures.

Notably, there were no loss of control inflight (LOC-I) accidents in 2025. This is only the second time this has been achieved, after 2020, and is significant because LOC-I accidents are a leading cause of fatalities.

In addition, airport facilities contributed to 16 per cent of accidents in 2025. This reinforces the need to fully respect global standards for runway safety areas, frangible installations within safety zones, and the effective mitigation of hazards such as runway surface contaminants, inadequate markings or lighting, and obstacles within protected areas or near runways.

On airport infrastructure, Walsh said that “airport infrastructure and runway environments play a critical role in accident outcomes”.

He added that “in several events, rigid obstacles near runways increased accident severity, likely turning otherwise survivable occurrences into fatal ones”. He also said that “all airports and regulators should continuously review runway safety areas and the structures near runways for compliance with global safety standards”.

As regards IOSA airlines, airlines on the registry of the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) had an all-accident rate of 0.98, significantly lower than the 2.55 recorded by non-IOSA carriers.

Likewise, the all-accident rate of IATA member airlines stood at 0.72 per million flights, significantly lower than the 3.09 recorded for non-IATA members. All IATA member airlines capable of being IOSA-audited are on the IOSA registry.

Meanwhile, fatality risk, which measures the potential for loss of life, increased to 0.17 per million flights, higher than 2024 (0.06) and the five-year average (0.12).

The increase in fatality risk was driven by a small number of fatal accidents. For example, Air India 171, with 241 fatalities, and PSA Airlines flight 5342, with 64 fatalities, accounted for over 77 per cent of all loss of life on board aircraft in 2025.

As for the regional safety performance, Africa recorded seven accidents in 2025, with the all-accident rate improving from 12.13 per million sectors in 2024 to 7.86 in 2025, below the five-year average of 9.37.

Even so, Africa recorded the highest accident rate of any region. The fatality risk increased from zero in 2024 to 2.19 in 2025. The most common accident types in 2025 were runway excursions and other end state.

A review of other end state cases since 2018 shows that the AFI region accounts for the majority of these events, underscoring the need for improved compliance with state investigation obligations under Annex 13 of the Chicago Convention.

Of accidents involving AFI-based operators, 71 per cent involved turboprop aircraft.

In Asia-Pacific, there were six accidents in 2025, with the all-accident rate improving from 1.08 per million sectors in 2024 to 0.91 in 2025.

This was better than the five-year average of 0.99. Fatality risk remained unchanged at 0.15 in 2025 when rounded to two decimal places, although the precise rate declined slightly.

The most common accident types in 2025 were ground damage and tail strikes.

In the Commonwealth of Independent States, there were four accidents in 2025, with the all-accident rate increasing from 1.44 accidents per million sectors in 2024 to 2.74 in 2025, exceeding the region’s five-year average of 2.26.

The fatality risk increased from zero in 2024 to 0.69 in 2025. All accidents occurred with turboprop aircraft, including one fatal controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) event that resulted in 48 fatalities.

In Europe, there were 11 accidents in 2025, with the all-accident rate improving from 1.48 per million sectors in 2024 to 1.30 in 2025.

This was, however, higher than the region’s five-year average accident rate of 1.11. The fatality risk rate was zero in 2025, an improvement from 0.03 in 2024.

The largest proportion of accidents was related to inflight damage and tail strike.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, there were five accidents in 2025, with the all-accident rate improving from 1.84 accidents per million sectors in 2024 to 1.77 in 2025.

This was better than the five-year average of 2.02. The fatality risk decreased from 0.37 in 2024 to 0.26 in 2025.

The largest proportion of accidents was runway excursions.

In the Middle East and North Africa, there was one accident in 2025, involving a runway excursion, with the all-accident rate improving from 1.09 accidents per million sectors in 2024 to 0.53 in 2025.

This was also better than the five-year average of 1.01. Fatality risk has remained zero since 2019.

In North America, there were 16 accidents reported in 2025, with the all-accident rate rising from 1.49 per million sectors in 2024 to 1.68 in 2025, which was above the region’s five-year average of 1.33.

The fatality risk rate increased from zero in 2024 to 0.21 in 2025.

The most common accident types in 2025 were ground damage and tail strike.

In North Asia, there was one non-fatal tail strike accident, with the all-accident rate unchanged from 2024 at 0.16 per million sectors in 2025.

This was better than the region’s five-year average of 0.18 accidents per million sectors. Fatality risk has remained zero since 2023.

Turning to conflict zone risks, the report said the proliferation of conflict zones is driving significant rerouting and operational complexity.

In some regions, military activity has occurred in or near flight corridors. The latest reminder of this, it said, is the significant disruptions that have occurred with the outbreak of war between the US/Israel and Iran.

In that context, close coordination between military and civil authorities is essential to ensure the safe operation of civil aircraft.

When conflict zones present risks that cannot be mitigated, states are responsible for restricting or closing airspace in a timely, transparent, and coordinated manner.

It is also essential that the process of closing and eventually re-opening airspace remains focused on safety and security parameters and is not politicised.

Moreover, clear, consistent, and professionally communicated Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) and risk advisories are critical for airlines when conducting their own risk assessments in support of safe and efficient flight operations.

On this point, Walsh said that “civil aircraft must never be placed at risk from military activity, deliberately or accidentally”.

He added that “when tensions rise, governments must share timely risk information, ensure effective civil-military coordination, restrict airspace where needed, and provide airlines with sufficient information for their own risk assessments”.

He also mentioned that “whether closing or re-opening airspace, safety depends on transparency, facts, and coordination”.

On GNSS interference, the report said incidents of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) interference capable of misleading aircraft navigation systems have risen sharply in recent years.

According to IATA’s Incident Data eXchange, reported jamming events in 2025 increased by 67 per cent compared with 2023, while reported GPS spoofing incidents rose by 193 per cent.

Commenting on that trend, Walsh said that “GNSS interference events are deeply concerning” and noted that “airlines rely on GNSS for safe and efficient flight operations”.

He added that “while system redundancies support safe operations in the face of these deliberate acts, immediate steps by governments and air navigation service providers are needed to improve situational awareness and enhance mitigation tools for pilots”.

Ultimately, he said that “the practice of GNSS interference must be stopped”, adding that “anything less is both unacceptable and irresponsible”.

On timely, comprehensive, and public accident reports, the association said accident investigation reports that are delayed, incomplete, or unpublished withhold valuable safety insights that can improve safety.

IATA’s analysis of investigations conducted between 2019 and 2023 indicates that only 63 per cent of accident reports were completed in line with state obligations under the Chicago Convention.

Because investigations routinely take more than one year to finalise, a five-year dataset ending in 2023 provides an accurate view of global performance. Investigations are the responsibility of the states in which accidents or incidents have occurred.

When grouped regionally, significant variations in completion rates were noted. The Commonwealth of Independent States recorded the highest completion rate at 81 per cent, followed by North America (78 per cent), Europe (75 per cent), Asia-Pacific (68 per cent), North Asia (67 per cent), Middle East and North Africa (67 per cent), Latin America and the Caribbean (60 per cent), and Africa (19 per cent).

On investigations, Walsh said that “accident investigation helps us improve safety”, but added that “many reports are not published in a timely, complete, or accessible way”, adding that “some are not made public while others lack clear recommendations” and that “Annex 13 of the Chicago Convention is clear about state obligations”.

While compliance is improving, he said that “anything less than 100 per cent shortchanges everyone on opportunities to improve”.

He added that “where accident investigation capacity is the challenge, coordinated global support to strengthen investigation capabilities is needed”.

Finally, to support transparency and strengthen industry-wide safety learning, IATA said it has established a centralised platform that consolidates safety recommendations from final investigation reports into a single global repository.

This, it said, improves access to critical safety insights, enables data-driven analysis, and supports industry efforts to prevent similar events in the future.