Given that the average person takes a flight once every 22 months – that’s 43 flights in the average person’s lifespan – it’s safe to say that it’s a fairly run of the mill, standard way to travel.

Unless you’ve got a phobia, it’s unlikely that you worry too much about the time you spend up in the air – or the moments when you touch down again.

However, a seeming uptick in the number of high profile aviation accidents recently have had people thinking twice about whether to fly to their next vacation, or set out on a trip a little closer to home.

In the last few months there have been four major incidents on passenger planes, beginning with the Azerbaijan Airlines crash in Kazakhstan on Christmas Day. The civilian flight was struck by a Russian anti-aircraft missile.

Following that, on 29th December 2024 a Jeju Air 737 plane crashed in Muan, South Korea, with a PSA-American Airlines flight colliding with a US Military helicopter in the skies over Washington DC just a month later. With the Endeavor Air plane from Minneapolis crashing and ultimately flipping over in Toronto on 17th February 2025, people across the world have been left with two concerning questions.

What’s going on with flights right now?

And is it still safe to fly?

Despite the tragic fact that, across these four incidents, 284 people lost their lives, aviation experts claim that we have little to worry about when it comes to flying.

And according to a recent BBC report, despite how it might look, flying is actually safe than ever.

In the US alone, air accidents up to the end of January 2025 are significantly lower than in previous years. Data obtained by the BBC from the US National Transportation Safety Board suggests that in January 2025 there were 52 air accidents (note that this includes all types of aviation, not just commercial airliners – and all kinds of accidents are recorded, including those simply requiring a little maintenance to the plane). Though that might sound like a lot, in January 2024 the figure was 58, while in January 2023 there were a total of 70.

That is in spite of the fact that the number of flights in and out of the US in January 2025 is at an increased level when compared to the same month in the previous two years.

Why does it feel like there are more this year?

The incidents are simply higher profile.

However, with social media showing us frequent near-misses as the shock value of the videos ensure they gain extra traction, and with Netflix and other documentary producers filling our screens with speculative investigatory shows regarding air tragedies like missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 (which disappeared in March 2014, en route between Kuala Lumpur and Beijing) it is no wonder that recently, aviation incidents have never been far from our collective consciousness.

But, in an interview with the BBC, Finland’s former chief air disaster investigator Ismo Aaltonen said that there is no reason to believe that aviation safety has been compromised:

“It’s very unlucky that we had this period of many different kind of accidents, but people should not draw any conclusions based on this because they are such different cases.”

How can he be so sure that flying in 2025 is safe? Well because of the incredible amount of training that pilots go through – including comprehensive disaster training in flight simulators – and the thorough investigations that take place after disasters to ensure that they are not repeated:

“If you look at simulators today, how advanced they are, they are like real aircraft. It’s completely different to when I started flying more than 40 years ago.”

If Aaltonen is to be believed – and given his high profile role, there is no reason to think that he shouldn’t – there is a significantly more dangerous part of your vacation travel:

“Be careful how you make your trip to the airport. That’s the most dangerous part of the trip compared to the actual flight.”

And he’s right. According to US Department of Transportation data, procured by the BBC, only 1% of travel related deaths in the country were on board or related to a flight.

By contrast, 95% of those deaths happened on US roads.

Of course, it is only natural to worry when you’re flying – you’re thousands of miles above the ground and entirely out of control when it comes to the plane’s trajectory. It is in our survival instincts to find that fact at least a little uncomfortable.

But you can rest safe in the knowledge that – despite the recent high-profile incidents – flying remains the safest way to travel.

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