Signs of Airline Financial Trouble
The exact timing of an airline’s cessation of operations is very difficult to predict, but travelers can discern some obvious signs that an airline is in serious financial trouble. While almost all airlines experience financial losses periodically, reports of missed payments to suppliers or lessors, aircraft groundings, and airlines missing payroll are all indicators that an airline is undergoing severe financial distress that exceeds normal financial issues. Other signs that an airline’s future may be in jeopardy include financial problems with an airline’s parent company, the withdrawal of a major investor, or the breakdown of an attempt to sell the airline. It should be noted, however, that such issues do not indicate that an airline’s bankruptcy is inevitable, as some airlines have experienced these issues and recovered from their precarious financial situations.
Missed payments to suppliers, employees, lessors, and authorities are clear signs that an airline may not be able to maintain its operations. Ensuring such payments is a top priority for an airline’s leadership; missing payments can result in suppliers or airports denying service to an airline, which can cause flight cancellations and other operational disruptions. Lessors may also repossess aircraft from airlines that miss payments. If airlines fail to pay maintenance providers or become unable to afford spare parts, they may be forced to ground aircraft for safety reasons, another sign that an airline may be unable to continue operations for much longer.
Financial problems at an airline’s parent company or the withdrawal of a major investor can also jeopardize an airline’s operations. Notable examples of this trend include the shutdown of Belgian flag carrier Sabena (SN) in 2001 after its parent company Swissair (SR) collapsed, and the shutdown of major Australian carrier Ansett Australia (AN) in the same year amid financial challenges at parent company Air New Zealand (NZ). Air New Zealand ultimately survived the crisis, but Ansett did not. More recently, several subsidiaries of Abu Dhabi’s flag carrier Etihad Airways (EY) have experienced major financial difficulties as a result of their parent company’s challenges. While Etihad itself is highly unlikely to cease operations thanks to strong financial backing from Abu Dhabi’s government, its subsidiaries Darwin Airline (F7), Air Berlin (AB), Niki (HG), and Jet Airways (9W) have all ceased operations in the last three years after Etihad withdrew funding for the carriers.
Travelers should take special notice if an airline they are flying on stops selling tickets, or if a bid to secure a last-ditch loan or investment for the airline fails. While some airlines have gone through such situations and survived, most have ceased operations shortly afterward. Thomas Cook’s failure occurred immediately after a deal to secure additional investment in the company collapsed and the British government rejected the company’s bid for a last-second loan. French carrier XL Airways France (SE) announced Sept. 19 that it was suspending ticket sales; the carrier has indicated that it will cease operations in the coming days unless it can secure a rescue deal.
A country’s bankruptcy laws and a government’s ability to assist financially distressed airlines can also impact airline shutdowns. US law allows bankrupt airlines to continue operating without interruption while they reorganize. Many other countries, however, do not have laws allowing bankrupt businesses to continue operating. The lack of such a law in Switzerland played a major role in Swissair’s downfall in 2001. Some struggling airlines can also turn to their countries’ governments for assistance in maintaining operations in the face of financial challenges, especially if they are one of the country’s main airlines or are state-owned. Some governments, however, are unwilling or unable to assist ailing carriers. EU laws prohibiting governments from providing unfair aid to private companies have played a direct role in multiple airline shutdowns in the past two decades.
Operational and Travel Impacts of Airline Failures
The impacts of airline failures on passengers depend on how prepared authorities are for the shutdown. A well-organized civil aviation authority who is prepared for an airline to cease operations can often accommodate all passengers relatively quickly. An unexpected shutdown, however, can force passengers to fend for themselves, both for getting to their destinations and obtaining refunds for canceled flights.
Civil aviation authorities that know in advance an airline is likely to cease operations can provide significant assistance to passengers. The UK government was aware of Thomas Cook’s likely demise several days in advance and developed a plan to immediately assign almost all Thomas Cook passengers stranded abroad to alternative flights, including special charter flights that authorities had arranged in advance. The UK government followed a similar plan when Monarch Airlines (ZB) ceased operations in 2017. The German government took even more extreme steps when Air Berlin failed in 2017; the government provided the carrier with a loan that allowed it to continue operations for another two months before shutting down in a controlled manner. In cases where governments aid passengers after an airline ceases operations, most of a government’s efforts focus on repatriating passengers stranded abroad; such operations generally do not provide flights to passengers who have yet to start their trips.
Disorganized airline shutdowns can leave passengers on their own to arrange travel back home. When Spanish carrier Primera Air (PF) ceased operations in 2018, the carrier simply stopped all flights, withdrew all staff from airports, deactivated its email addresses and phone numbers, and told passengers to not contact the airline. Passengers who do not receive government-arranged flights after an airline shuts down should arrange alternative transportation as quickly as possible. Alternative flights tend to book quickly after an airline ceases operations, especially if the number of alternative flights is limited. In some instances, airlines will add extra flights or use larger aircraft to accommodate the surge in passengers from a competitor’s demise, but travelers should not count on this, especially in the first day or two after their carrier ceases operations.
A traveler’s ability to get compensation or refunds for their canceled flights after an airline ceases operation depends on local laws. Some airlines will offer passengers refunds immediately after they cease operations or offer to compensate a passenger for tickets bought on a different carrier. In some countries, however, passengers will simply become creditors for the bankrupt airline. In such instances, passengers generally are among the last to receive money from the sale of the bankrupt carrier’s assets, as secured creditors such as banks and other lenders receive priority over customers in most jurisdictions.
Looking Ahead
While the airline industry has experienced some of its most prosperous years, several large airlines have failed. As the global economic conditions that allowed airlines to thrive show signs of change, airline failures are likely to be more common, especially in several major markets including India, Indonesia, and Argentina. The more challenging economic environment, including rising oil costs and an increase in the number of low-cost carriers, is likely to put financial pressure on airlines. The impacts of airline failures can vary considerably depending on how authorities in the airline’s home country react.
About WorldAware
WorldAware provides intelligence-driven, integrated risk management solutions that enable multinational organizations to operate globally with confidence. WorldAware’s end-to-end tailored solutions, integrated world-class threat intelligence, innovative technology, and response services help organizations mitigate risk and protect their people, assets, and reputations.
What Really Matters
The most important factors in an airline’s safety standards go well beyond the airline’s safety record. An airline with strong safety standards should have a management team composed of experienced airline industry professionals. A safe airline needs to have a strong safety culture – the idea that safety comes before everything else, including profits and customer service. Safe airlines avoid risks. Aviation is one of the most risk-averse industries out there, and that’s a big reason why it’s also one of the safest. Finally, a safe airline needs to follow the rules. Aviation is a very by-the-book industry. There are rules for everything, and those rules often in place because of lessons learned in past accidents.
Evaluating an airline based on these factors requires dive deep into an airline’s operations to see how the airline performs on these issues, and most travelers don’t have the time or expertise to perform that deep dive. Fortunately, travelers aren’t the only ones who are interested in an airline’s safety. Governments, industry groups, and other international organizations regularly assess airlines’ safety standards; their findings can offer travelers a quick and easy understanding of whether their airline meets appropriate safety standards.
The Tools
There are six freely-available tools that travelers can quickly use to evaluate an airline’s operational and safety standards. Three of these tools are based on direct audits of the airline, while three are based on evaluations of the government that certifies and oversees the airline.
In order to fully understand these tools, a traveler should understand the importance of a civil aviation authority (CAA), the government body responsible for regulating all the airlines registered in its country. An example of a CAA is the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the US. An effective CAA will set appropriate operational and safety standards for airlines under its jurisdiction, will have the capacity to inspect airlines and ensure they follow those standards, and will have the authority to ensure that airlines that do not meet the standards are not allowed to operate.
Not all CAAs are created equal. Some do a very good job, but others have major shortcomings. Travelers looking at an airline regulated by effective CAAs can have high confidence that the airline has appropriate safety standards, because the CAA won’t allow them to operate if they don’t have those. An airline from a country with an inadequate CAA can still have good safety standards; the airline just has to self-regulate, because the CAA isn’t going to do it. In those countries, travelers cannot assume that an airline has appropriate safety standards, because the CAA may let airlines with inadequate safety standards operate. Travelers therefore need more evidence that the airline’s safety standards are up to par.
Travelers can use three publicly-available tools to evaluate a country’s CAA: The International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA), the List of Carriers Banned within the European Union, and the Universal Safety Oversight Audit Program (USOAP).
If a traveler still isn’t satisfied after evaluating the CAA that oversees an airline, the traveler can also look at the airline’s international certifications that are based on direct audits of the airline. The three audit-based tools are the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA), the EU Third Country Operator (TCO) program, and an airline’s alliances and codeshares. Travelers should note, however, that these programs are voluntary, so a lack of such certifications is not necessarily a negative indicator for an airline’s operational and safety standards.
International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA)
The IASA program run by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) assesses whether the CAA in a country meets international standards; Category 1 is a pass, Category 2 is a fail. The IASA is updated continuously based on direct FAA audits of CAAs, and carries regulatory implications. Airlines from Category 1 countries can start new service to the US and new codeshares with US carriers, while airlines from Category 2 countries cannot, although they can continue existing services or to the US or codeshares with US carriers. The biggest problem with IASA is that is only lists countries with flights to the US or codeshares with US carriers, so there are numerous countries not listed in IASA. That doesn’t mean those countries have good or bad CAAs, it just means travelers need to look elsewhere for that information.
List of Carriers Banned within the European Union
The EU ban list is a frequently misunderstood tool. A lot of media sources refer to this as the “EU Airline Blacklist” and suggest that every airline on the list is there because the EU found major safety flaws with the carrier, but this perception is inaccurate. Instead of auditing airlines, the EU audits CAAs, and then bans all airlines from a country whose CAA fails the audit. There are a few airlines that are banned outside of those country-wide bans, but those are rare. An airline that gets caught up in a countrywide ban isn’t necessarily unsafe – it just means they don’t have an effective CAA overseeing and certifying their operations. Airlines from countries with blanket bans can request exemptions from the list, in which case the EU will perform a direct audit of the airline and will exempt it if the airline passes; an exemption is therefore a very positive indicator for an airline’s safety standards.
Universal Safety Oversight Audit Program (USOAP)
The USOAP program is run by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the UN’s civil aviation arm. This program audits every CAA in the world and provides a breakdown of how each CAA scored in different categories of the audit. If a country performs particularly poorly in a safety-critical area, that country gets a red flag that designates them as a Significant Safety Concern. Unfortunately, the audits aren’t very frequent, and some of the data on the USOAP website is up to 10 years old.
IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA)
The IOSA program is run by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the main global trade group for airlines. IOSA is a comprehensive audit program that airlines must pass in order to become IATA members. The program is based on direct audits of the airline, covers airlines around the world, and has been proven effective at ensuring strong operational and safety standards. Depending on the year, the accident rate for IOSA-certified carriers is usually about one-third that of non-IOSA carriers. Travelers should note that IATA gives such out two-letter IATA codes regardless of whether an airline is an IATA member; just because an airline has an IATA code does not necessarily mean that they’re an IATA member who has passed an IOSA audit.
EU Third Country Operator (TCO)
The TCO program is run by the EU’s European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). For non-EU airlines to operate flights to EU destinations, they have to pass an EASA audit and receive this TCO authorization. Like IOSA, TCO authorization is based on a direct audit of an airline’s operations. The thoroughness of the audit depends on EASA’s confidence in the CAA of the airline’s home country. If EASA has confidence in the CAA, they may only do a quick review, but if they don’t have confidence they do a much more thorough audit.
Alliances and Codeshares
Membership in one of the big three airline alliances – oneworld, SkyTeam, or Star Alliance – is a very positive indicator for an airline’s safety standards, as the alliances put prospective members through safety audits. Codeshare agreements with major carriers are also a positive, as they show the major carrier trusts the other carrier’s safety standards enough to let their paying passengers fly on that carrier.
Conclusion
Air safety is the safest form of transportation available. In many operating environments, flying on an airline with inadequate safety standards is still the safest option for intercity transportation. However, travelers who put in the effort to seek out safer air travel options will reduce their chances of becoming victims of an aircraft accident, and the tools discussed above are a good way to start that effort.
If checking those six tools is still too much work, check out WorldAware’s Worldcue Airline Monitor, in which WorldAware’s analysts use 14 criteria to evaluate an airline’s safety and give it a Preferred or Not Preferred rating.
About WorldAware
WorldAware provides intelligence-driven, integrated risk management solutions that enable multinational organizations to operate globally with confidence. WorldAware’s end-to-end tailored solutions integrated world-class threat intelligence, innovative technology, and response services to help organizations mitigate risk and protect their employees, assets, and reputation.
Why were you the one chosen to de-board the plane? What should you do next?
Airlines consistently overbook flights. They do not do this to bump people off of flights, but to ensure that all seats on the flight are purchased and filled. Airlines overbook flights because some passengers cancel their flight last minute, do not show up for their flight, miss their connection or show up too late to the airport. Additionally, people can be bumped from flights because of weight restrictions due to weather and cargo or if the airline switches from a larger aircraft to a smaller one.
Although it is not rare for airlines to overbook flights, it is rare that a person becomes involuntarily bumped from a flight. U.S. Department of Transportation statistics show that fewer than one out of 10,000 people are bumped from flights involuntarily. There is a difference between voluntary and involuntary bumping from a flight. Both options have their perks and disadvantages. Typically, prior to someone being involuntarily bumped from a flight, flight attendants will request for someone to voluntarily give up their seat. If no one volunteers they will proceed to involuntary bumping.
What to do when you’ve been involuntarily bumped from a flight:
You can be involuntarily bumped from a flight. This occurs when no one voluntarily gives up their seat on the plane. Contrary to the example in the beginning, airlines will rarely bump you from a plane once you have already boarded. Most airlines would bump you prior to the boarding process. However, once bumped the airline must give a written document to you, the involuntarily bumped passenger, regarding your rights. This document also contains reasons as to why you were bumped and why others were not.
The main reason passengers are bumped from a flight rather than others is based on check-in time and time the passenger arrived at the gate. One way to prevent this from happening is to check in to the flight prior to leaving for the airport, ideally check in the night before. If you do not arrive to the gate 15-30 minutes prior to the flight most airlines forfeit your reservation. You should especially arrive early to flights in busy airports or when flying to popular destinations. The last passengers to check in to a flight are typically the first to be bumped.
According to the Department of Transportation, if you are bumped from a flight you are often entitled to compensation in the form of cash or check. The amount paid to the passenger depends on the length of their delay and the original ticket cost. Here are the guidelines from the Department of Transportation to follow if bumped from a flight involuntarily:
Once you cash the check from the airline, you can no longer negotiate or request more money. If you do not think that the amount paid to you is fair, prior to cashing the check, you can take the airline to court and try to make more money. Furthermore, according to the Code of Federal Regulation, “No person may assault, threaten, intimidate, or interfere with a crewmember in the performance of the crewmember’s duties aboard an aircraft being operated.” Like the example in the beginning if you would have made a scene you could have been charged with a hefty fine.
International flights flying in to the U.S. do not have to abide by these rules, however most do voluntarily. Overall, Europe has similar rules to the United States. Europe calls for volunteers for compensation first. If no one comes they will proceed to bump someone from the flight. They give first priority to those with reduced mobility and any passengers accompanying them. According to Eur-Lex the rules of denied boarding in Europe are as follows:
What happens when you volunteer to be bumped from a flight?
On the contrary, if you have the time to be bumped from a flight voluntarily it may pay out generously. The longer you wait before boarding the flight, the more vouchers and or money the airline will most likely give you. The amount not only depends on the urgency of finding a volunteer, but also the length of delay from your future destination. Some questions to consider asking before accepting the airline’s offer:
Additionally, do not be afraid to ask for one or more of the following:
Final tips to avoid being bumped:
This article was originally published by Travel & Transport. Click here to read the original article.
]]>To make that partnership a success on both sides, you need to understand how the airline industry fundamentally works, what challenges you may encounter and how to deliver what your airline partner needs most on terms that suit you best.
These do’s and don’ts, gathered from years of experience in the airline sector, provide an introduction to successful airline partnerships. We hope you find them useful.
Airline revenue management
Just like food, theater tickets and cut flowers, airline seats are a perishable commodity. If seats aren’t sold when the airplane takes off, their value vanishes. So to get the best possible yield from each flight, airlines use a process of revenue management where seats are assigned codes or classes that maximise their highest potential yield.
The lower classes might be advance-booked seats with little flexibility, while higher classes may give the traveler more options, or be sold in peak travel seasons. The actual fares will vary from day to day or hour to hour as the departure date approaches. To sell as many higher value seats as possible, airlines use complex algorithms and cumulative data to plan and update their prices from first sale date right up to take-off time.
When going into partnership with airlines, it’s essential to understand the basics of how they price so you can get the most out of your travel budget and negotiate most effectively with your supplier. Your travel management company (TMC) has in-depth understanding of revenue management processes and can really help you and your procurement department to gain insight here.
Understanding airline fare classes
Airline revenue management is complex. So, for those not familiar with how it all works, fare or booking classes are entirely different from cabin classes (which are the level of service you will receive on the airline).
Airline classes differ by carrier, but the breakdown of fare classes for a large European carrier looks something like the table to the right – you can see that each cabin class has its own list of fare classes. For example:
Class of service Booking class
First F A P
Business J C D Z I R
Premium Economy W E
Economy Y B M U H Q V W S T L K O N
Each fare has different rules attached to it that include what days (and sometimes times or months) you’re allowed to travel, how it can be combined with other fares on a multi-leg journey, and a deadline for purchasing it, e.g. three weeks in advance.
Airline negotiation do’s…
Think local before you go global If you have a large air travel budget, you might think greater savings can be achieved by spending your budget with one partner to get one great rate. But in practice, it makes more sense to think bottom-up.
There may be local-level suppliers in very competitive markets who can offer you better deals dollar-for-dollar, even though your spend with them is a small proportion of your whole budget. When choosing who to do business with, consider local markets first, then move up to regional, pan-regional and global levels. Your smaller deals could add up to bigger overall savings.
Sell in the soft benefits If there’s not much wiggle-room on the fare discounting side of things, remember that negotiating on soft benefits like loyalty perks, upgrades, waivers and favors can all help to swing a deal.
Build strong relationships Once you’ve established the airline partnerships that work best for you, you’ll need to put continued effort into keeping those relationships strong. Remember that a partnership must go both ways – if things are going well for you right now, don’t be tempted to capitalise on that at your partner’s expense. When the tables are turned further down the road, you may find them doing the same to you.
Be transparent and flexible No matter how big the figures, negotiation always comes down to dealing with people. Being authentic and honest in your negotiations fosters trust, and if you’re willing to be open about what you can and can’t do, you’re more likely to find that your airline partner will return the favour, and help you out where they can. Credibility, supported by data and firm travel policies carries an intrinsic value.
Airline negotiation don’ts…
Put all your eggs in one basket It’s advice that has stood the test of time, and it definitely applies to your airline partnerships. Be pragmatic, be flexible, and be willing to spread your spend across secondary and tertiary suppliers if it gives you the best outcome and the best coverage overall. Remember – everyone wants your business, but some may be more willing to demonstrate it than others.
Overcommit or undersell If you’ve promised to commit a percentage of business you can’t fulfill, it’s better to be honest about it. Similarly, it’s unwise to miss out on opportunities by being over-cautious in your commitments. Keep on top of the data to make sure you have an accurate picture of what you have to offer your partners. Your account manager can help you gather the data and collate it so that you have the vital figures at your fingertips when it’s time to seal that all-important deal.
Browbeat or be browbeaten Remember, best-in-class discounts are earned by demonstrating that you can deliver on volume. If you have been unable to meet your volume commitments, don’t be tempted to use withholding your business as a bargaining chip – all it does is weaken the partnership and jeopardize the chance of good business in the future. Instead, adopt a collaborative, open approach to solving the problem together as partners.
Let paperwork slow you down In the airline business, things change fast. Legal processes on the other hand tend to be slow. Waiting for contracts to be drawn up or updated can mean costly delays and restrictions to business. As a result, many companies are moving towards ‘evergreen’ contracts, which set out the fundamental basis of the partnership while allowing you the flexibility to change terms based on mutual needs and opportunities in the shorter term. This frees you up to get the best value out of your partnership.
The value of your TMC
Travel management companies know the airline business inside out, and have industry connections that can help open doors that would otherwise be closed to you.
Many airlines lack the resources to make direct connections with all but the biggest businesses, but with your TMC acting as intermediary, you can reach out to airlines and make beneficial business relationships. Your TMC is your connection to an untapped world of potential airline partners
]]>At a time when the spotlight is shining with a torrid intensity on Asian airlines in the wake of several tragedies in the past year, it should also shine just as brightly on Asian carriers offering the best service and safety.
And there are many of them.
Last summer, in its annual survey of the world’s best airlines, Skytrax named Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific Airways as its World’s Best Airline — for the fourth time. The carrier also earned the honor in 2003, 2005 and 2009.
Maxwell Leitschuh, a transportation analyst for iJET International, said it is irresponsible to draw conclusions about whether to travel to Asia or use Asia-based airlines based on incidents from the past year. iJET is a privately held consultancy based in Annapolis, Md., that offers risk management solutions and response services for global organizations.
Leitschuh noted that air travel is still the safest mode of transportation, with the odds of being involved in an incident at 1 in nearly 4 million.
Some Asian carriers are among the best.
“Some Asian airlines are the best in the world, airlines that I would go out of my way to fly on. Some I would tell people to avoid,” he said. “A lot of it depends on the regulators and whether they are good enough to keep the bad airlines out of the sky.”
Also named in the Skytrax Top 10 were Singapore Airlines at No. 3; ANA All Nippon Airways at No. 6; Garuda Indonesia at No. 7; and Asiana Airlines at No. 8. Not a single U.S. carrier was in the top 10, and the Skytrax awards carry some weight.
They were based on data from more than 18 million passenger surveys from more than 100 countries that were conducted from August 2013 to May 2014, according to the company. It will release its 26th annual results this summer.
The crash in February of a TransAsia turboprop plane shortly after takeoff from Taiwan’s Sungshan Airport in Taipei has cast an unwanted spotlight on the safety and efficiency of airlines that are based in Asia.
At issue is whether these collective carriers are growing too quickly and whether they have the proper oversight from their respective civil aviation authorities.
In the past year, two TransAsia aircraft have crashed, a Malaysia Airlines jet disappeared over the Indian Ocean and still has yet to be found, another Malaysia flight was shot down over Ukraine and an AirAsia plane crashed in December in the Java Sea.
“I don’t think there’s a theme,” John Thorn, a senior transportation analyst for iJET International, said. “However, one thing I do see that is concerning in Asia, especially countries like Indonesia, is the rapid growth of carriers. You have to have the infrastructure and personnel to handle an influx of aircraft. They have to add support services and flight crews to fly them and maintain them. Are their regulators putting pilots in the second seat that are as experienced as they should be? Every country is different and that is a concern.”
According to the Associated Press, TransAsia has added about two dozen routes to mainland China and other Asia cities since it went public in 2011.
Asia is home to some well-established carriers.
But Asia-based airlines like Cathay-Pacific, Singapore, All-Nippon and more are well-established and have stringent oversight, much like U.S. airlines.
Cathay Pacific Chief Executive Officer Ivan Chu said in a statement that his carrier is “deeply committed to building (Hong Kong) into one of the world’s great aviation hubs. We do this through our huge investment in new aircraft, our world-beating seats, lounges and other products.”
Cathay Pacific has been doing this through the aforementioned investments in its fleet, as well as some less subtle changes, including the reopening of The Pier First Class Lounge in 2015 and Business Class Lounge in 2016 with a brand-new design. The next generation of seats and inflight entertainment products will be introduced with the arrival of the A350 aircraft in early 2016.
“The airline industry is becoming more competitive by the day and the only way to prosper is to continue to offer the best to your customers at every level,” Chu said. “The Skytrax World’s Best Airline award demonstrates that we have been doing the right things, but we will not rest on our laurels.”
The scrutiny that Asian airlines have come under, of course, has been brought about in part by some highly publicized disasters. The disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 in March 2014 is still an ongoing story a year later — not a single trace of the plane has been found. Amateur video footage and a continuing civil war in Ukraine, where Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was inexplicably shot down, certainly contributed to questions about the airline.
And February’s tragedy of the TransAir crash was particularly shocking — still photographs and dramatic video from an automobile’s dashboard camera show the aircraft turning vertical, its wing clipping a taxi cab on a bridge, then the bridge itself, before crashing into a shallow river.
But something obviously went wrong, Leitschuh added, saying that aircraft are designed to take off, gain altitude and be able to turn around and land on one engine if need be. The last communication from the pilot of the doomed TransAsia flight was a Mayday call saying that the left engine had a flameout. Combined, the two pilots had more than 12,000 hours of flight experience.
Infinitesimal Safety Difference
All of this called into question the safety records of Asian airlines. But according to Time magazine, the safety difference between Asian carriers and North American airlines is infinitesimal.
Noting that the International Air Transport Association keeps a running tally of “significant” accidents around the world — “significant” being accidents that cause injuries or at least $1 million in damage — carriers based in Southeast Asia and the Pacific averaged roughly 2.7 accidents for every 1 million flights between 2009 and 2013, according to IATA, while North American carriers averaged 1.32 accidents.
That might sound significant, Time reported, until you factor in that the accidents are figured for every MILLION flights. That means Asian Pacific carriers had a .0001% higher accident rate than did the North American carriers.
In data compiled by Airline Ratings.com, the major carriers in Asia all rated highly in their respective safety records. According to AirlingRatings, the safety rating for each airline is based on a comprehensive analysis using information from IATA, the world’s aviation governing body and leading association, along with governments and crash data.
Each airline has the potential to earn seven stars. The seven-star safety assessment criteria are as follows:
The Top Asia-based Carriers for Safety
Here are the top Asia-based airlines in terms of safety, according to the data compiled by AirlineRatings.com:
Seven Stars: Cathay-Pacific, All Nippon, Air China, China Airlines, China Eastern, China Southern, Hainan Airlines, Japan Airlines, Korean Air, Singapore Airlines and Sri Lankan Airlines.
Six Stars: Air India, Surinam Airways and Thai Airways.
Five Stars: Bangkok Air, Malaysia Airlines and Vietnam Airlines.
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