By Owen Tucker-Smith and Andrew Tangel

Thursday's Air India crash was the latest in a string of high-profile aviation accidents and problems that have rattled the public. Flying on a plane remains safer than many modes of transportation, officials say, and fatal crashes remain rare.

How safe is it to fly?

Air disasters are much rarer than they used to be. In the U.S., commercial passenger airlines had gone more than 15 years without a major fatal crash until late January this year. That's when an American Airlines regional jet collided with a U.S. Army helicopter near Washington, D.C., killing 67 people.

Aviation safety experts credit the nation's sharp decline in crashes in recent decades to an earlier push by U.S. regulators and industry officials to encourage self-reporting of mistakes and sharing information about incipient risks.

What does the data show on close calls and other air-safety risks?

This year's tragedy at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport put the stakes of air safety front and center in the U.S., and has drawn increased attention to crashes of smaller, private planes.

Air-safety officials since the January crash have tried to soothe anxious travelers, saying that flying remains the safest mode of transportation. Between 2000 and 2009, there were more than seven passenger fatalities per billion miles driven by a car, while there were .07 passenger fatalities per billion miles flown by a plane, according to Ian Savage, director of the transportation and logistics program at Northwestern University.

And Boeing planes -- how safe are they?

The Air India crash could bring renewed scrutiny to the airplane-manufacturing giant, which has spent years working to improve its operations and quality control after two crashes of its 737 MAX jets in 2018 and 2019 -- and a midflight door-plug blowout on one of its planes in early 2024.

Thursday's crash involved Boeing's 787 model, which hasn't previously been involved in any fatal accidents. The Dreamliner model has been a bestseller for the manufacturer, despite earlier and more recent production setbacks. Those involved supply-chain issues, battery fires and other quality-control problems.

Boeing Chief Executive Kelly Ortberg last year told employees that the company couldn't afford another mistake. In June, Boeing agreed to pay $1.1 billion to avoid prosecution for the MAX crashes.

Crashes can result from a series of missteps, potentially involving crew, maintenance or design issues. Accident investigations can take a year or more, and there currently isn't any indication that the aircraft's design or manufacture played a role in the Air India accident.

What about air-traffic control?

In the U.S., the aviation industry and regulators have grappled with a series of close calls and floundering confidence in the nation's air-traffic-control system. Staffing has been a long-running problem. The Federal Aviation Administration is thousands of controllers short of its target, and some controllers say they are fatigued.

Technology has been another trouble spot. In early 2023, the breakdown of a critical pilot-alert system prompted a nationwide halt to airport departures. In April this year, communication between air-traffic controllers and pilots near Newark Liberty International Airport was briefly cut off as radar screens went dark and backup systems failed. While crashes were avoided, the incident led to a series of delays and flight diversions.

What is the U.S. government doing to make the skies safer for travelers?

The Transportation Department, which oversees the FAA, has put forth a plan that would replace and update air-traffic-control facilities, telecommunications equipment, radar and surveillance systems. Transportation officials are also aiming to ramp up hiring and retain experienced controllers.

How much will that cost? Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy hasn't specified, but has estimated the price tag at "lots of billions." Aviation industry and labor groups have figured at least $31 billion in additional emergency funding is needed to be appropriated over the next three years.

President Trump has backed the effort. "The ancient infrastructure is buckling under the weight of more than a billion flying passengers a year," he said last month.

This explanatory article may be periodically updated.

Write to Owen Tucker-Smith at Owen.Tucker-Smith@wsj.com and Andrew Tangel at andrew.tangel@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 12, 2025 13:09 ET (17:09 GMT)

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