Thursday 31 October 2019

Is Flying Really Safer Than Driving?

man looking nervously out the window of a plan before take off
bezikus/Shutterstock

No matter how often you get on a plane, it’s hard not to feel a little thrill of excitement at takeoff. And for some people, that little thrill can quickly turn into major anxiety about leaving the ground so far behind.

RELATED: How to Overcome Your Fear of Flying

Few people feel that same discomfort when it comes to getting in a car, though. You might have heard that flying is actually safer than driving—but it probably seems hard to believe. How could traveling thousands of feet in the air possibly be safer than traveling on the ground?

But strange as it sounds, flying really is safer than driving. Let’s take a closer look at how it works—this might make you feel a little better about those holiday flights you’ve booked.

What Makes Flying Safer?

The handful of high-profile plane crashes in the news in recent years might have given you second thoughts about boarding a plane. However, flying remains safer than driving by a long shot.

The International Air Transport Association reports that there was just one major accident for every 5.4 million flights in 2018. This means your odds of being in a plane crash are ridiculously low. And as years go by, plane travel is getting even safer. New regulations, higher training standards, and better technology are all contributing to improved flight safety.

For example, pilots now have to follow certain rules to make sure they get enough rest before a flight, minimizing the risk of a crash due to pilot fatigue. There are also two pilots in the cockpit all the time for safety.

Planes today have better engines and backup systems than they once did. The automation of a plane can often make up for any human errors, giving us a system that gets a little more foolproof every year.

Finally, better satellite tech also makes flying safer, by helping planes avoid risky weather and mapping out the safest routes possible.

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