If you're afraid of flying, don't fly these (potentially) unsafe airlines
Does flying give you the jitters? Lion Air, Nepal Airlines, and Kam Air, Tara Air, and SCAT Airlines have all have below average safety records. You may want to steer clear of these airlines if they are options in your region.
The last decade has have not been good for aviation, at least not from a PR perspective. From the botched landing of Asiana flight 214 in late 2013, to the fatal crashes of not one, but two Malaysia Airlines 777s in 2014, to the tragic loss at sea of an Indonesia AirAsia plane later that year and the 737-MAX disasters of 2019 and 2019, it seems like there's a major plane crash every time you turn on the news. Unsafe airlines, it seems, fly everywhere.
The good news is that in spite of how dangerous flying might seem to be, global aviation safety continues to improve, overall, year-over-year. The bad news? None of the world's most dangerous airlines make headlines, which means you may inadvertently board one of their planes without knowing.
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Lion Air
Aero Icarus via Wikimedia Commons
Although Indonesia AirAsia has come under a great deal of scrutiny since flight QZ8501 crashed in late 2014, it is not one of Indonesia's most dangerous airlines, even if its overall safety rating prevents it from ever flying to the United States or European Union, a ban shared by fellow Indonesian carriers Garuda Indonesia, KALstar Aviation and Sriwijaya Air.
No, that dubious honor goes to Lion Air, who has suffered many hull losses during its time in operation, although only one of them ever made major headlines. On the other hand, the only thing more dangerous than Lion Air's safety record are its low fares, which are incredibly hard to resist, even if you prefer to avoid unsafe airlines.