Thai Airways In Top 10 Worlds Most Dangerous Airlines

[neverdie]

On a particular flight the pilot had hammered his 737 into the runway really hard, while the Pilot stood at the door while the passengers exited, finally everyone had gotten off except for a little old lady walking with a cane. She said, "Sir, do you mind if I ask you a question?"

"Why, no Ma'am," said the pilot. "What is it?" The little old lady said, "Did we land, or were we shot down ?"

[neverdie]

Compared with the deaths due to motor bike accidents, I'd opt for Thai Airways any time.

But they don't fly to my neighborhood 7-11

Yeah, everyone keeps saying that but no statistician has ever worked out how many vehicular trips are made each day when working out road statistic. So we keep hearing yeah 15,000 motorcyclists were killed in Thailand last year......but how many trips were undertaken, pharking godzillions I bet.

Statistics are wonderful things arnt they. My advice is, "don't eat yellow snow"

[TBWG]

Hi I'm not a great lover of Iranians but I see Iran Air is 3rd worst.

If that includes the Airbus shot down by the trigger happy US Navy then I think that is a tad unfair!

TBWG

[pampal]

By the late 1970s, Iran Air was the fastest growing airline in the world and one of the most profitable. By 1976, Iran Air was ranked second only to Qantas, as the world’s safest airline, having been accident free for at least ten consecutive years. Although both airlines were accident free, Iran Air came second only because of fewer operational hours flown compared to Qantas. Prior to this ranking, a fatal accident occurred on 25 December 1952, in which 27 of the 29 passengers on board perished, when their Douglas DC-3 crashed on landing.

source

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Air

The sanctions on Iran have caused the safety rankings of the airline to drop. Iran Air cannot buy parts for their jets and are forced to manufacture in Iran or buy dubious spares on the black market.

[maprao]

European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) Publishes a "blacklist" of airlines not allowed to fly to Europe.

[craigt3365]

And then there are some of us who ride motorcycles in Thai traffic. Or, trust Thai bus drivers. I think it's safer to fly.

For sure! I was in China during the SARS crisis. My father was freaked out, and I could NOT get flights out. I told him the odds of me dying by SARS was way lower than the odds of dying in a highway accident. Something like 700 people a day die on highways in China. It's just that an airline accident is soooo much more dramatic!

I've flown on 6 out of those 10...but there are way worse airlines. The little, local ones in developing countries are the ones to watch out for.

[mrdome]

This statistic is almost meaningless. Past events have little influence on the future in many cases as much as we like to see a pattern/

Oh, and Egypt Air should have over 200 of those deaths removed as that flight's crash was *not* an accident.

[LaoPo]

Something like 700 people a day die on highways in China.

That sounds dramatic...255.500 deaths on highways in China/year??

Any link you can prove this number of 700 deaths per day since the (still dramatic) number I found was 201 deaths/day in 2008* (but down 20% from 2007)?

The traffic in China (1.330.000.000 people is indeed horrible due to the lack of proper driving education and the behavior of so many stupid drivers, selfish as they are.

The development in traffic, roads, highways and car ownership didn't gradually grow as in our west.....it grew almost overnight, exploding to so many cars/trucks/busses etc.

As an example and comparison in the USA (with 310.000.000 people not possible of course): In 2008 there were 37,261 people killed in motor vehicle crashes, the lowest number since 1961**. Versus China the death toll in the USA would reach almost 160.000/year if the population would be the same (times factor 4.29)

However, that doesn't count of course since he number of cars/truck and busses in the US is far higher so it's safe to conclude that the death toll in the US would be lower per capita than in China if one starts counting the mileage/car/bus/truck between the 2.

* http://www.spacemart...report_999.html

** http://www.nhtsa.gov/

LaoPo

[craigt3365]

Something like 700 people a day die on highways in China.

That sounds dramatic...255.500 deaths on highways in China/year??

Any link you can prove this number of 700 deaths per day since the (still dramatic) number I found was 201 deaths/day in 2008* (but down 20% from 2007)?

The traffic in China (1.330.000.000 people is indeed horrible due to the lack of proper driving education and the behavior of so many stupid drivers, selfish as they are.

The development in traffic, roads, highways and car ownership didn't gradually grow as in our west.....it grew almost overnight, exploding to so many cars/trucks/busses etc.

As an example and comparison in the USA (with 310.000.000 people not possible of course): In 2008 there were 37,261 people killed in motor vehicle crashes, the lowest number since 1961**. Versus China the death toll in the USA would reach almost 160.000/year if the population would be the same (times factor 4.29)

However, that doesn't count of course since he number of cars/truck and busses in the US is far higher so it's safe to conclude that the death toll in the US would be lower per capita than in China if one starts counting the mileage/car/bus/truck between the 2.

* http://www.spacemart...report_999.html

** http://www.nhtsa.gov/

LaoPo

It was a UN report, stating the "official" numbers reported in China are way low, and they estimated 700/day. I'm still looking for that link...but did find this one:

WHO Study Finds Auto Accidents in China Kill 600 People Every Day.

http://www.accidentattorneys.com/china-auto-acc-deaths.cfm

Edit: What was shocking is they predicted 500k yearly deaths by 2020!!!!

When I was in Beijing a few years ago, I saw 2 or 3 deaths. I've rare seen a dead person lying on the road before...but saw 2 or 3 during my 10 day visit there. Unreal....and one was a traffic cop who just got run over! They don't stop for peds, cut in front of you, honk horns like crazy, etc. Very, very, very bad drivers. And I've been in 70 countries so far. Not the Middle East yet, which I have heard is crazy also!

[LaoPo]

It was a UN report, stating the "official" numbers reported in China are way low, and they estimated 700/day. I'm still looking for that link...but did find this one:

WHO Study Finds Auto Accidents in China Kill 600 People Every Day.

http://www.accidenta...-acc-deaths.cfm

Edit: What was shocking is they predicted 500k yearly deaths by 2020!!!!

When I was in Beijing a few years ago, I saw 2 or 3 deaths. I've rare seen a dead person lying on the road before...but saw 2 or 3 during my 10 day visit there. Unreal....and one was a traffic cop who just got run over! They don't stop for peds, cut in front of you, honk horns like crazy, etc. Very, very, very bad drivers. And I've been in 70 countries so far. Not the Middle East yet, which I have heard is crazy also!

Shocking.... the problem with all these numbers, whether officially from China or from the UN or WHO is that nobody knows for sure what numbers are correct.

I'm aware that official numbers are not trusted but I also wonder how and where the UN and WHO find their numbers....?

The point is that we talk about the shocking numbers of deaths in a certain country, in this case in traffic in China, but the Chinese people and Government are used to huge numbers and I wonder why they would make up a lot lower number of deaths than factual; it doesn't make sense since nobody in- or outside China cares if there are 200 or 700 deaths/day in traffic.

The same as we don't blink an eye anymore if we hear about another (self)-bombing in whatever city in the world, killing 20, 50 or 200 people. And, that's a good thing otherwise we couldn't proceed living anymore, caring about all these casualties.

That doesn't mean that the driving attitude and driving lessons of the Chinese and Asians in general shouldn't improve dramatically.

Although I come to China for more than 30 years, I have yet to encounter a serious accident with fatal casualties but I have to say that sitting in a taxi from Shanghai to Hangzhou, 7 years ago, my wife and I were nearly there when the taxi had to perform an emergency brake and put the nose of his taxi UNDERNEATH the truck in front, speeding around 120km/hr on the highway....

But the same (almost fatal) happened to me the same year in a taxi from Pattaya to Don Muang at night time..within the visibility of the airport the lady driver almost killed us since she didn't see the truck on it's side in our lane..and she was speeding 130km/hr....my scream woke her up...

LaoPo

Edited December 5, 2010 by LaoPo

[DickDastardly]

It's a bit rich calling Egyptair 990 an accident. It was deliberately crashed by the pilot.

[NanLaew]

And wasn't Egypt Air the one that crashed on approach to Don Muang... twice? On the same factory?

[illy]

if statistics are going to go back in history then Qantas have indeed incurred fatalities and most certainly 'hull losses'

De Havilland DH-9C G-AUED - 24 Mar 1927 - 3 fatalities

De Havilland DH-86 VH-USG - 15 Nov 1934 - 4 fatalities

De Havilland DH-86 VH-USE - 20 Feb 1942 - 9 fatalities

Short S-23 (flying boat) VH-ADU - 22 Apr 1943 - 13 fatalities

Lockheed 18 Lodestar VH-CAB - 26 Nov 1943 - 15 fatalities

Short S-23 (flying boat) VH-ABB - 11 Oct 1944 - 1 fatality

Avro 691 Lancastrian (BOAC G-AGLAX, operated by QF) - disappeared between Colombo & Cocos Is (no trace found) - 23 Mar 1946 - 10 fatalities

Avro 691 Lancastrian VH-EAS - 07 April 1949 - hull loss, no fatalities

De Havilland Drover II VH-EBQ - 16 Jul 1951 - 7 fatalities

Lockheed L1049 VH-EAC - 24 August 1960 - hull loss, no fatalities

source: PPRuNe

also they paid an absolute fortune to repair and 'save' the 747 that was damaged by the off runway accident at Don Mueng and they are intending to do the same with the A380 currently sitting as a mangled unflyable mess at Changi all to save the 'safety reputation' of this once great, now in tatters, airline.

[illy]

we all know statistics can be used to give any result wished for...... check this out.

http://www.meretrix.com/~harry/flying/notes/safetyvsdriving.html

for those that dont wish to read all the mumbo jumbo .....

"Choosing "mile to mile" as the more appropriate comparison for differing modes of transportation (and overlooking that small planes often takeoff and land at the same airport, without ever really "going anywhere"), let's review the fatality rates:

driving: 1.32 fatal accidents and 1.47 fatalities per 100 million miles

airlines: .05 fatal accidents and 1.57 fatalities per 100 million miles

GA: 7.46 fatal accidents and 13.1 fatalities per 100 million miles

So mile per mile, GA flying has about 5 times as many fatal accidents, and 9 times as many fatalities, as compared to travel by motor vehicle. The airlines have about the same fatality rate as driving, but a much lower fatal accident rate (by virtue of a large number of fatalities per accident)

just goes to show that anyone can use statistics to present any argumnet if they so desire: