2023, a year with no fatal accidents in commercial aviation

A Statistical Analysis of Commercial Aviation Accidents 1958 - 2023, the publication which provides Airbus’ annual analysis of aviation accidents, is now available. It includes a commentary on the year 2023, as well as a review of the commercial aviation safety record evolution over the previous decades.

The 2023 edition of A Statistical Analysis of Commercial Aviation Accidents reveals some good news. No fatal accidents and no hull losses were recorded in commercial aviation last year even though air traffic increased by 20% compared to 2022, reaching more than 32 million flights. 

This  confirms a long-term trend; the commercial aviation industry has achieved huge improvements in safety over recent decades. It also underlines how technology contributes to improving safety when taking a flight in a commercial jet aircraft.

The safety record for 2023 is a good result. However, it is important to remember that statistics for one year are not always indicative of the overall safety trends. This analysis uses accident rates calculated as a 10-year moving average to provide a more consistent trend. 

Safety is a never-ending effort and preventing accidents is a constant quest for all those involved. This is why the runway collision between an A350 and a Dash-8 turboprop aircraft that occurred on 2 January 2024 in Tokyo, which claimed the lives of 5 people on board the Dash-8, is also mentioned in this 2023 edition. It is a stark reminder: we need to avoid the trap of complacency and remain vigilant in the reinforcement of all safety barriers to prevent accidents. 

For more information on commercial aviation accidents and what the statistics tell us about our continual efforts to improve safety, visit the accident statistics website.

Explore the new interactive features, which allows you to customise the information displayed on the graphs and explore the four generations of commercial jets using the immersive 360𝆩 Cockpit Viewer.