Organization Highlights Need for Enhanced Safety as Air Traffic Rises

While aviation may be the safest form of travel, a recent report from the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) shows just how much room for improvement there is. It pointed out the need to keep safety a top priority as both accident rates and air traffic congestion continue to rise.

The 2025 Edition Safety Report logged 95 accidents involving scheduled commercial flights worldwide in 2024, compared to 66 the year before. Ten of those accidents were fatal, with 296 deaths reported, representing over four times the 72 fatalities in 2023.

This works out to a global accident rate of 2.56 per million departures, up significantly from 1.87. ICAO was quick to point out that these numbers are still lower than pre-pandemic levels and came amid record-breaking traffic, with over 37 million departures worldwide. That’s reassuring in a way, though not exactly comforting to the general public.

ICAO’s analysis identified four high-risk categories that dominated last year’s statistics: controlled flight into terrain, loss of control in flight, midair collisions, and runway incursions. These accounted for 25 percent of fatalities and 40 percent of fatal accidents. Turbulence also continues to be a problem, responsible for nearly three-quarters of serious injuries.

In response, ICAO says it is stepping up global safety initiatives. Plans include enhanced runway safety measures, real-time turbulence monitoring systems, and updated guidance to deal with Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) interference…spoofing and jamming being the kinds of “innovations” the industry could do without. The organization is also pushing for more data-driven reporting of accidents, incidents, and even wildlife strikes, with the goal of spotting risks before they turn into statistics.

The report highlights regional differences as well. Asia-Pacific and Europe/North Atlantic each had three fatal accidents in 2024, while South America recorded one accident that alone claimed 62 lives. Asia-Pacific led the fatality count overall, followed by South America and Europe/North Atlantic.

FMI: www.icao.int