In the last century, since the Wright Brothers took that first flight back in 1903, the advancements in aviation have been nothing short of incredible. Today, on any given day there are over 87,000 flights scheduled in the skies over the United States. Many experts claim that flying is far safer than any other form of transportation. That may, however depend on what type of plane you are flying in or even what airline you are flying with. When most of us think of flying, we envision the large jumbo jets that are the mainstay of all the commercial airlines. The truth, however, is that of all the airplanes flying overhead in any given day, only about one-third of them are large commercial airplanes. The other two-thirds are made up of private airplanes, commuter airplanes, for-hire airplanes (charter flights), military airplanes and cargo planes. Statistics tell us that almost 50% of all flights in the skies on any given day are either private, commuter or for-hire flights. So are these flights as safe as the large commercial jets?

Experts debate the formulas used to determine the risk of being killed in a plane crash, but the most common statistics tell us that you chances of being killed in a plane crash are someone around 1 in 10 million. Those sounds like pretty good odds considering the odds of being killed in an automobile accident are somewhere around 1 in 15,000. This makes flying sound considerably safer than driving. What those statistics don’t discuss in any detail is what a difference the type of plane, or even the airline, can make in determining those odds. Those odds are also based on your chances of dying in a single flight. The more you fly, the better your odds are of being killed in a plane crash so the frequency of flight is also relevant.

Studies show us that flying on a large commercial airplane is by far the safest form of flying. Fatalities per million flight hours on large commercial airliners as a whole are at 4.03. Compare that figure to fatalities per million flight hours on commuter airlines – 10.74 and fatalities per million flight hours on air taxis/on demand flights – 12.24. The deadliest form of flight is by private airplane with a fatality per million flight hours of 22.43. Clearly, your safest option is to stick to the large commercial airlines according to these statistics. Furthermore, it pays to do your research regarding safety records of the airlines. Your odds of being killed on a single flight on one of the top 25 airlines with the best safety and accident rates is just under 1 in 10 million. Those odds drop to 1 in about 850,000 when you fly on one of the airlines in the bottom 25 for accident rates.

If you have been involved in an aviation accident or have lost a loved one due to an aviation accident, you may be entitled to compensation for the injuries you have suffered or for the pain caused by the loss of your loved one. Time is an important factor in aviation accident cases so the best thing you can do is consult with an experienced California aviation accident attorney as soon as possible. California aviation attorney Emery Ledger has over 12 years of experience helping victims of aviation accidents and their families. If you would like a free detailed evaluation of your aviation accident case, please contact his firm, Ledger & Associates, at 1-800-300-0001 or online at www.ledgerlaw.com.