The U.S. government began publishing statistics on the safety of commercial aviation in 1927. While 1978 legislation eliminated economic regulation of the U.S. airline industry, it left safety regulation very much in place. The following table depicts the safety record of U.S. airlines performing scheduled services worldwide, from 2000 to present, as recorded by NTSB.
Year | Accidents: Total | Accidents: Fatal | Fatal Accidents per 100,000 Departures | Fatalities: Total | Fatalities: Onboard |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2000 | 49 | 2 | 0.018 | 89 | 89 |
2001 | 41 | 6 | 0.019 | 531 | 525 |
2002 | 34 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
2003 | 51 | 2 | 0.020 | 22 | 21 |
2004 | 23 | 1 | 0.009 | 13 | 13 |
2005 | 34 | 3 | 0.027 | 22 | 20 |
2006 | 26 | 2 | 0.019 | 50 | 49 |
2007 | 26 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
2008 | 19 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
2009 | 26 | 1 | 0.010 | 50 | 49 |
2010 | 28 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
2011 | 29 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
2012 | 23 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
2013 | 18 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
2014 | 29 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
2015 | 27 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
2016 | 26 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
2017 | 30 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
2018 | 28 | 1 | 0.011 | 1 | 1 |
2019 | 36 | 1 | 0.010 | 1 | 1 |
2020 | 10 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
2021 | 21 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
Sources: 1927-37: AA Statistical Handbook (December 1945). 1938–71: CAB Handbook of Airline Statistics (1973), Part VIII, Items 19c,d, pp. 595-596; NTSB Safety Studies Division. 1972–82: FAA Statistical Handbook (1972-82), Table 9.3, p. 161, citing NTSB for totals; 1983–present: NTSB Aviation Accident Statistics, Table 6. Fatal Accident Rate excludes incidents resulting from illegal acts, consistent with NTSB practice.