Commercial airline fatalities plummeted in 2013, making last year the safest ever in the past decade for airline travel.
A total of 17 airline accidents caused 224 deaths in 2013, as opposed to an annual average of 27 accidents and 703 fatalities during the years between 2003 to 2012.
The numbers were reported by the European Aviation Safety Agency this week on the verge of the 100th anniversary of commercial aviation this year. No countries in the European Union suffered a fatal accident in 2013.
The United States, however, suffered its first fatal accident on American soil since 2009 when a Boeing 777 crashed while on approach to San Francisco International Airport last July, killing three, including a passenger who was struck by an emergency response vehicle at the scene of the crash.
Get exclusive online content like this delivered straight to your inbox by signing up for our free enewsletter.
We welcome your comments on flyingmag.com. In order to maintain a respectful environment, we ask that all comments be on-topic, respectful and spam-free. All comments made here are public and may be republished by Flying.
