Air Malta received six stars out of seven in an annual online review, but only got three out of seven for its product.
AirlineRatings.com analysed 409 airlines from around the world, compiled from information from the world’s aviation governing body and leading associations along with governments’ and crash data. Some stars are also given according to the discretion of the website’s seven editors.
The website rated airlines according to a varied set of safety and product criteria (see below), with stars assigned accordingly. Australian carrier Qantas emerged top of the website's safety rankings.
“Qantas has been the lead airline in virtually every major operational safety advancement over the past 60 years and has not had a fatality in the jet era. But Qantas is not alone. Long established airlines such as Hawaiian and Finnair also have perfect records in the jet era,” a spokesman for the website said.
And the least safe airlines? Air Koryo, North Korea’s flag carrier, Bluewing Airlines, based in Suriname, Indonesia’s Trigana Air Service, and four Nepalese carriers – Buddha Air, Nepal Airlines, Tara Air, and Yeti Airlines – were awarded just one star.
According to the Aviation Safety Network (ASN), which records all air crashes and incidents reported around the world, there were 10 fatal accidents involving commercial flights last year, resulting in 44 deaths – none of them on passenger jets. This is down from 16 fatal accidents and 302 deaths in 2016.
The 20 safest airlines (in alphabetical order)
1. Air New Zealand
2. Alaska Airlines
3. All Nippon Airways
4. British Airways
5. Cathay Pacific Airways
6. Emirates
7. Etihad Airways
8. EVA Air
9. Finnair
10. Hawaiian Airlines
11. Japan Airlines
12. KLM
13. Lufthansa
14. Qantas
15. Royal Jordanian Airlines
16. Scandinavian Airline System
17. Singapore Airlines
18. Swiss
19. Virgin Atlantic
20. Virgin Australia
The safety criteria
• Is the airline IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) certified?
If yes, two stars are awarded; if not, no star is given.
• Is the airline on the European Union (EU) Blacklist?
If no, a full star is awarded; if yes, then no star is given.
• Has the airline maintained a fatality free record for the past 10 years?
If yes the airline is awarded a full star; if not then no star is given.
• Is the airline FAA endorsed?
If yes, a full star is awarded; if not, no star is given.
• Does the country of airline origin meet all 8 International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) safety parameters?
If yes, TWO stars are awarded to the airline. However, if the one criteria that is below the average is so by less than 15 per cent it is considered a pass. If 5 to 7 of the criteria are met one star is awarded. If the country only meets up to four criteria no star is given.
The 8 ICAO audit parameters that pertain to safety are: legislation, organisation, licensing, operations, airworthiness, accident investigation, air navigation service and aerodromes.
• Has the airline’s fleet been grounded by the country’s governing aviation safety authority due to safety concerns?
If yes, an additional star will be taken off the total for five years from the time of grounding.
• Does the airline operate only Russian-built aircraft?
If yes, an additional star will be taken off the total.
The product criteria
• Seat pitch
1 star if 30 inch and greater across the airlines fleet in economy class. No star if less than 30 inch across the fleet. 1/2 star if mixed seat pitch across fleet (some aircraft 30 inch and greater, others less than 30 inch).
• In Flight Entertainment
1 star if Personal Audio/Video On Demand (AVOD) across the fleet in all classes of travel. No star if no Audio/Video On Demand, shared cabin screens only or nothing at all. 1/2 star if mixed across airlines fleet (some of the fleet have AVOD some do not).
• Website information
1 star if comprehensive information. No star if no English or incomplete information. 1/2 star if inconsistent information.
• Beds
For airlines that do not operate long haul routes and therefore do not need beds but have business class in a 2-2 seating configuration in single aisle aircraft they are awarded 1 star; seating configuration in 3-3 with the middle seat left free awards the airline a 1/2 star; if there is not enough information to be sure a 1/2 star is awarded.
• Meals
1 star if provision of full meal in economy. No star if a passenger has to pay for meals and alcoholic beverages. 1/2 star if passengers have to pay for meals or if passengers have to pay for alcohol on international routes or if the airline does not offer alcoholic beverages at all regardless of religious beliefs.
• Blankets and pillows
1 star if provided by airline or if passengers have to pay for blankets on domestic and/or short haul routes but they are available. No star if not provided or unavailable. 1/2 star if blankets need to be paid for on medium and long haul routes.
• Editor's discretionary
Editors draw on their collective 150 years plus experience to award the final star.
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