Emirates, Etihad rank among world’s safest airlines for 2016

Dubai airline Emirates and Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways have been ranked among the top 20 safest airlines globally for 2016 by AirlineRatings.com.

Emirates’ partner Australian airline Qantas topped the list for the third consecutive year thanks to a fatality-free record, the website said in a report.

The site’s annual rating system takes into account factors such as audits from aviation governing bodies and lead associations as well as government audits and the airline’s fatality record.

“Over its 95-year history, Qantas, the world’s oldest continuously operating airline, has amassed an extraordinary record of firsts in operations and safety and is now accepted as the industry’s most experienced carrier,” the report highlighted.

It admitted that 2015 was a disturbing year for airline safety with tragic accidents such as the GermanWings and Metrojet disasters in which up to 374 people were killed.

However according to Aviation-Safety.net data, the 16 accidents in 2015 with 560 fatalities were below the 10-year average of 31 accidents and 714 fatalities.

Last year was also a significant improvement over 2014 when there were 21 fatal accidents with 986 fatalities.

Overall, the world’s airlines carried a record 3.6 billion passengers on 34 million flights in 2015, the report added.

World’s top 20 safest airlines for 2016 (in alphabetical order)

1. Qantas

Country: Australia

2. Air New Zealand

Country: New Zealand

3. Alaska Airlines

Country: United States

4. All Nippon Airlines

Country: Japan

5. American Airlines

Country: United States

6. Cathay Pacific Airways

Country: Hong Kong

7. Emirates

Country: United Arab Emirates

8. Etihad Airways

Country: United Arab Emirates

9. EVA Air

Country: Taiwan

10. Finnair

Country: Finland

11. Hawaiian Airlines

Country: United States

12. Japan Airlines

Country: United Arab Emirates

13. KLM

Country: Netherlands

14. Lufthansa

Country: Germany

15. Scandinavian Airline System

Country: Denmark

16. Singapore Airlines

Country: Singapore

17. Swiss

Country: Switzerland

18. United Airlines

Country: United States

19. Virgin Atlantic

Country: United Kingdom

20. Virgin Australia

Country: Australia