Many people were killed when an Air India plane bound for London with 242 people on board crashed minutes: Worst air crashes in recent years

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A barge carrying a crane transports parts of the wreckage from the Potomac River as an American Airlines plane lands on the runway, in the aftermath of the collision of American Eagle flight 5342 and a Black Hawk helicopter that crashed into the river, by the Ronald Reagan Washington National.

From flipped planes to fatal collisions, 2025 has felt like a turbulent year for air travel—literally. But while recent high-profile incidents have rattled public confidence, experts say there’s more to the story than social media panic.

So far, 2025 has seen two fatal commercial jet crashes, the latest being the Air India disaster. 

Other unsettling events so far this year include a Delta plane flipping on a Toronto runway, an American Airlines engine fire that forced an evacuation via the wing, and a helicopter collision in D.C. that claimed all lives onboard. Plus, there are all the incidents of aging radar and air traffic control losing access to planes while they’re in the air.

2024

SOUTH KOREA

Jeju Air international flight 7C2216 crashed at Muan International Airport on Dec. 29, 2024, killing all 175 passengers and four of the six crew in the deadliest air disaster on South Korean soil.

KAZAKHSTAN

Azerbaijan Airlines international flight J2-8243, an Embraer (EMBR3.SA), opens new tab E190, crashed on December 25 after being diverted from Russia to Kazakhstan, killing 38 people. Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev said in December the plane had been damaged by accidental shooting from the ground in Russia. Moscow has not confirmed this.

JAPAN

A Japan Airlines (JAL) (9201.T), opens new tab plane collided with a smaller Coast Guard aircraft on the runway of Tokyo’s Haneda airport on January 2. All 379 people aboard the JAL plane, an Airbus (AIR.PA), opens new tab A350-941 flight, escaped the burning airliner. Five of six crew on the smaller aircraft were killed.

 According to aviation data analysts, 2023 was one of the safest years in aviation history, with only six fatal accidents worldwide. 2024 saw a spike—16 fatal crashes with 333 deaths. However, that number is still a fraction of the thousands of fatalities per year seen decades ago. In fact, from 2006 to 2024, no single year topped 1,000 deaths. Compare that to the 1970s, when yearly fatalities often exceeded 2,000.

2022

CHINA

A China Eastern Airlines (600115.SS), opens new tab Boeing 737-800 crashed into a mountainous region in the southwestern Guangxi region on March 21, 2022, killing all 132 people on board, in China’s deadliest aviation disaster in 28 years.

2020

IRAN

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards shot down a Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) Boeing 737-800 on Jan. 8, 2020 shortly after it took off from Tehran Airport, killing all 176 people on board. Iran’s civil aviation body blamed a misaligned radar and an error by an air defence operator.

2019

ETHIOPIA

A Boeing 737-MAX 8 Ethiopian Airlines [RIC:RIC:ETHA.UL] jet crashed on March 19, 2019 minutes after takeoff from Addis Ababa for Nairobi, killing all 157 people on board.

Soon after, the Boeing 737 MAX global fleet was grounded over safety concerns.

2018

INDONESIA

A Boeing 737 MAX Lion Air plane crashed into the Java Sea soon after taking off from Jakarta on October 29, 2018, killing all 189 people on board.

Experts attribute the rise in fear to visibility, not risk. With smartphones and social media capturing every minor mishap, a skewed sense of danger has taken hold. But the truth? Air travel is still among the safest forms of transportation.

That’s thanks to advances in jet engine reliability, cockpit tech, and air traffic systems. So much so, that today, pilot error—not mechanical failure—is the leading cause of accidents.

Of course, accidents will still happen. But the odds? You’d need to fly every day for over 100,000 years to face a fatal crash, according to IATA data. Flying has never been more closely monitored, regulated, and prepared for emergencies

The bottom line? Yes, the headlines have been unnerving. But the skies are still safer than they seem. If you’re boarding a flight this summer, the data says you’re in good hands.