Fly Damnit

How safe are airplanes?

So is it?

Well static from http://www.planecrashinfo.com says that the odds of being killed on a single trip 52.6 million to 1. Where the odds of being killed by normal cars is 7.6 million to 1. And the odds of being hit by a lightning is 280,000 to 1. That means you are more likely to be struck by a lightning.

Your chances of being involved in an aircraft accident are about 1 in 11 million. On the other hand, your chances of being killed in an automobile accident are 1 in 5000. Statistically, you are at far greater risk driving to the airport than getting on an airplane. However, the perception is that you have more control over your fate when you are in your car than as a passenger. Experience shows otherwise considering that over 50,000 people are killed on the highways

Source: Capt Nelson

He also mentioned that studies have shown one would have to fly once a day every day for over 15,000 years in order to statistically be involved in an aircraft accident. Which is true. The reason why people think its not safe is because of the media coverage. Every airplane related incidents will be on the front news. And most people are afraid because they don’t really have control of the plane. Unlike driving, where u have total control of he car. But still how safe is your driving. Planes have autopilots and the pilots are trained to handle emergencies.

A Typical 737 can stay more than 13 mins on air with no engines from 35,000ft. But they don’t do that. They want to get to at least 26,000ft to attempt an in-flight start. I wont talk about loss of pressurization yet.

Above is the chart where most accidents occur. As you can see the landing part has the most percentage because that’s where the pilot’s workload is the most. Maybe its not even the pilots fault. Maybe its raining and the runway is slippery or ice has developed over the runway. Well in that case it is still the pilot’s fault. He should’ve not landed and go to another airport. Source: Statistical Summary of Commercial Jet Airplane Accidents, Boeing

So when you hear the captain’s announcement about not landing due to weather, don’t blame him. Its probably the best decision for all 200 passengers. Or he might suggest a delay. That’s usually a good idea too.

So, yes, its safe.