Global Air Crash Fatalities Spike to 334 in 2024, Reports German Aviation Association
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Berlin, Jan 6 (NationPress) The number of fatalities from air crashes around the world escalated significantly in 2024, with 334 individuals losing their lives in civil aviation mishaps, as reported by German media on Monday, referencing preliminary statistics from the German Aviation Association (BDL).
The deaths included not only passengers and crew members but also seven people on the ground. This alarming statistic represents a considerable rise, surpassing the 80 fatalities recorded in 2023 by more than four times.
The reported figures pertain to accidents involving aircraft that can accommodate a minimum of 14 passengers. Data concerning incidents involving smaller aircraft has yet to be made available, and military aircraft accidents were excluded from this report.
While the BDL noted an uptick in air accidents since reaching a historic low in 2017, it emphasized that aviation safety has significantly advanced over the years, with long-term trends still indicating a consistent decrease in accident rates. According to BDL Managing Director Joachim Lang, "Flying was roughly 53 times safer last year compared to the 1970s," as reported by Xinhua news agency.
The most tragic aviation disaster of 2024 took place on December 29, when a Boeing 737-800 operated by South Korea's Jeju Air crashed during its landing process, resulting in the loss of 179 passengers. Investigations into the cause of this incident are currently underway.
Earlier in the day, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) revealed that fatal crashes involving light aircraft resulted in 27 deaths from 20 avoidable accidents last year in Australia, following two consecutive years where 33 deaths were reported.
Despite the overall decline in fatalities, the series of deadly crashes in 2024 has raised significant concerns regarding the future of the hobby aircraft sector. Aviation specialists are advocating for more extensive investigations into recreational aircraft accidents, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on Monday.
Aviation consultant and training officer Lorraine MacGillivray expressed her desire for increased air crash investigations and reduced bureaucratic barriers for pilot training, particularly following a sequence of crashes in Victoria that claimed five lives between September and November last year, as reported by the ABC.
However, the ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell noted that larger passenger airlines are prioritized when determining investigation focus. He cautioned that the risk of fatalities is higher around Australia’s 2,300 non-towered aerodromes, urging pilots to maintain vigilance to enhance safety.
The ATSB mentioned its capacity to investigate approximately 70 incidents across aviation, maritime, and rail sectors annually, despite being alerted to over 8,000 incidents each year, according to Xinhua news agency.
