Airplane Safety: Safer Than Ever

Despite what people may believe it seems that airplane travel has become very safe. For 2011, only one life was lost for every 7.1 million passengers. According to the data, between 1991-2001 you were ten times more likely to get in a plane accident than today. I would point out during this period I don’t remember planes falling out of the skies or crashing into one another. People often feel safer driving to the airport. However, the mortality rate of motor vehicles is eight times that of planes (it should be noted the mortality rate of motor vehicles has also dramatically decreased over the same time period).

If we attribute anything to the drop in deaths it would have to be technology, experience, and information. Technology in the cockpit has vastly improved over the last few decades. Electronic displays give pilots much more detailed information than ever before. Pilots can now train in simulators that put them through scenarios that they would never see in the sky. Also the fact that we know what caused previous crashes impacted how future airplanes were designed.

In essence, we are now safer in the friendly skies than ever before. People claim that this is because of government regulations. People forget the impact of the private sector in creating the tools that made everyone safer. The last thing airplane manufactures and suppliers want to see is their company name posted on the evening news or paper because they took shortcuts that created lost lives. Companies in pursing profits can’t help do the socially responsible thing and keep us all safer.