According to statistics, approximately 40% of people worldwide suffer from aerophobia, experiencing a pathological fear of flying in any aircraft. As with other situational phobias, the fear of flying is disproportionate to the danger it poses, but explaining this to an anxious person is incredibly difficult. Meanwhile, car travel is perceived much more favorably by travelers, despite the daily grim news of traffic accidents.

Official statistics

To accurately answer the question of which is safer—a plane or a car—we should put emotions aside and turn to statistical data.

There are several methods for calculating fatalities in different modes of transport worldwide. The most accurate and widespread is the ratio of fatalities per distance traveled. The starting point is generally considered to be 160 million kilometers.

According to statistics, 1,6 people die in road accidents per 160 million kilometers traveled, while 0,6 people die in air travel per 160 million kilometers traveled. According to these data, driving to the airport is much more dangerous than traveling by plane.

According to the information summary Rosaviatsii As of December 13, 2023, there is no trend towards an increase in the number of aviation incidents in Russian air transport.

Statistics show that the number of aircraft crashes in 2024 has decreased despite sanctions restrictions. This is also stated in the document. "The state of flight safety in civil aviation of the States Parties to the Agreement on Civil Aviation and the Use of Airspace in the first half of 2024" which is published on the website of the Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC).

According to this report, there were no aviation accidents involving aircraft with a takeoff weight over 5700 kilograms (the aircraft most people fly) in 2023. In the first half of 2024, there were two accidents involving aircraft with a takeoff weight over 5700 kilograms, including one fatal crash with two fatalities.

The absolute level of flight safety in terms of aviation accidents in the first half of 2024 (15 accidents) remained virtually unchanged compared to 2023 (13 accidents). The indicators for accidents (C) and fatalities improved:

• 2024: 5 disasters with the death of 9 people.
• 2023: 7 disasters with the death of 13 people.

However, the accident rate on Russian roads increased by 4,5% by the end of 2023. According to data State Traffic Inspectorate In 2023, there were 132,466 road accidents, killing 14,500 people and injuring 166,500. From January to August 2024, there were 6,9609 road accidents in Russia, killing 7430 people and injuring 87,011.

Not all road accidents are recorded by inspectors, so the actual accident rate may be higher. In mid-2023, researchers at the Ministry of Internal Affairs linked the increase in road accidents to the aging of the country's vehicle fleet and increased traffic flows in the southeast. The latter factor also confirms this. RuDorogi.ru, a distance calculation service, where every summer the number of routes to resorts in the Krasnodar Territory and Crimea increases significantly.

To understand the safety of any mode of transport, it's important to know more than just statistics. While technology is constantly improving, automobiles have been slow to develop. The automotive industry is focusing more on improving comfort. Meanwhile, airplanes are being equipped with increasingly efficient instruments.

Why are airplanes safer than cars?

Distribution of responsibility

Several specialists are always responsible for flight safety. All personnel, from pilots to flight attendants and air traffic controllers, understand their special responsibilities to minimize problems on board the aircraft, and if a problem does arise, they know how to quickly resolve it.

Extensive training and certifications

Pilot training is much more difficult and time-consuming than obtaining a driver's license. Airline pilots undergo rigorous training and must log at least 1500 flight hours to earn an airline pilot's license.

A pilot must also meet certain health requirements to be eligible for a medical certificate to fly.

Advanced security features and technologies

A modern airliner is equipped with the most advanced safety equipment, designed to address all potential risks. This includes aircraft control instruments, communications, navigation, fuel management, weather monitoring, and collision avoidance equipment.

Cars are also equipped with safety features, but these features are not as advanced as those found in airplanes, and there is no legislation requiring all cars to be equipped with these systems.

Along their trajectories

Airplanes travel on separate routes, while vehicles travel on the same plane, increasing the risk of vehicle-to-vehicle collisions. Such collisions are nearly impossible for airplanes.

Harvard scientists calculated that the odds of a plane crash are 1 in 1,200,000, and the odds of being a victim of a plane crash are 1 in 11,000,000. The odds of dying in a car crash are 1 in 5000. It may be hard for aerophobes to believe, but the safest form of transportation on earth is the airplane. Despite news reports of plane crashes, there is only one death per eight million flights.