Flying Is the Safest Form of Transportation
Ever since 1914 when commercial air travel was introduced as a method of transportation, skeptics have raised concerns that it is unsafe. Much of this skepticism comes from the notion that if a person flies in an airplane they accept an inordinate risk of dying in a plane crash. However, flying is the safest, fastest, and most rational method of transportation, and, unlike drivers, the pilots go through strenuous training. The chances of someone dying in a plane crash are slim to none, and pale in comparison to the risk of dying while driving a car.
Every method of travel has risks. There are risks when you walk from your room to the kitchen. Some of those include stubbing your toe, slipping and falling on the floor, or walking into a door or wall. With all those risks, people still walk to the kitchen and do not think twice about those incidents occurring. Nevertheless, these incidents are unlikely to occur. While there is a small chance that a person will, for instance, slip on the floor, it is very unlikely. This is the same for flying.
There are psychological reasons for people’s fear of dying in a plane crash, even as unlikely as it is. This could be because they, as passengers, feel they have no control. However, these fears can be alleviated because, according to David Ropeik, the chances of an average American dying in a plane crash is “one in eleven million.”[1] To put that in perspective, the chances of someone being struck by lightning over the course of their lifetime is one in 15,300 as per the National Weather Service.[2] The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has pointed out that since 2009 there have been zero fatalities aboard commercial flights in the United States.
People are often afraid of flying because of risk perception. As irregular as plane crashes are, they tend to grab people’s attention and the images stick with them. These events stay in people’s minds and give them a false impression that those tragic events occur frequently, even though they do not. Research from the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health reveals that people are more fearful when they are facing an uncontrollable or compulsory threat opposed to one that is under a person's control.[3] This is why people feel that driving is safer. They believe they have complete control of their safety when, in reality, they do not. The National Safety Council states that the chances of someone dying in a car crash is “one in 107.”[4] Therefore, there is a much greater chance of dying in a car crash than there is in a plane crash.
People often say flying is not safe because the pilots do not fly the airplanes. This statement is untrue. Usually, after the airplane reaches ten thousand feet, the pilot turns on the autopilot. This device guides the aircraft through the smoother parts of the flight plan. However, if any change is necessary for reasons such as turbulent weather, the pilots will manually do it themselves. The autopilot keeps the plane’s altitude according to the flight plan, its speed, and its heading (navigation). Both pilots carefully watch the diagnostics to make sure the airplane is on the correct course. Every hour pilots check to make sure all of the instruments of the aircraft are working correctly. The most important parts of the flight are the takeoff and the landing. During these critical times, pilots have one hundred percent control of the aircraft. While pilots are not flying the plane, they are still making sure everything in it is running smoothly—from engines to hydraulics. They can also disengage the autopilot at any point.
In order to become a commercial pilot for an airline, trainees have to complete 1,500 flight hours, which takes about two years. They must first obtain their private pilot license and then move on to their commercial pilot’s license. After that, they must acquire their Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certificate, which is the highest pilot license issued by the FAA. Once hired by a company, pilots have to undergo rigorous training and education. Trainees have to first go through multiple weeks of systems-and-operations training. They then have to complete a month of simulated training where pilots experience every scenario and safely land the aircraft. Once they become a commercial airline pilot, they get a check ride at least once a year. Captains undertake a check ride every six months, and first officers get one every twelve months. Therefore, pilots are trained and ready for any scenario that comes their way.
While crashes rarely occur, they are highly publicized. It is human nature to be fearful in response to largely publicized tragedies. It is also human nature to not want to take risks, but people should be cognizant about how unlikely it is to be involved in a plane crash. They may be reassured that there is an average of “9,728 planes—carrying 1,270,406 people—in the sky at any given time,” according to FlightAware, and Reuters’ statistics claim that there have only been fourteen fatal crashes in the past five years.[5,6] Therefore, flying is the safest way to travel.
