Best in terms of innovation, fleet, and safety.
Not all airlines are made the same. There are low-cost carriers that are as basic as they can get. Then there are those with major fleets, a range of amenities and luxury classes. But the cost-effectiveness or the swankiness has no significance if the airline doesn’t score well on the safety index. That should be the number one criterion for flyers when they’re booking tickets.
AirlineRatings brings out a list of the safest airlines annually, judging 385 airlines on innovation, safety, and new aircraft. This year, Australia’s Qantas took the top spot on the top 20 safest airlines list, while one airline in the U.S., Alaska, was in the top 10. Four others were featured in the top 20: Hawaiian, United, American, and Delta.
According to Editor-in-Chief Geoffrey Thomas, the team analyzed “crashes over five years, serious incidents over two years, audits from aviation’s governing bodies and lead associations; fleet age, expert analysis of pilot training, and COVID protocols in making their determinations.”