Qantas Airways, an Australian carrier, has earned the distinction of being the safest airline in the world after going without a fatal crash since 1951.
The airline topped the list of AirlineRatings.com’s top 10 safest airlines of 2013 among the 448 that the safety and product rating website monitors.
The top 10 airlines earned seven stars for safety and in-flight products, the highest any airline can get.
The remaining airlines in the top 10 in alphabetical order are: Air New Zealand, All Nippon Airways, Cathay Pacific Airways, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Eva Air, Royal Jordanian, Singapore Airlines and Virgin Atlantic.
No U.S. airlines cracked the top 10.
AirlineRatings.com takes into account several factors when coming up with its list, including audits from aviation’s governing bodies and lead associations as well as government audits and the airline’s fatality record.
The top 10 weren’t the only airlines to get seven stars for safety. In fact, 137 airlines earned those marks. But almost 50 got three stars or less.
AirlineRatings.com points out that Qantas has had an impressive record of firsts in safety and operations in its 93-year history.
It was the first international airline to operate around-the-world service with its Lockheed Super Constellations in 1958. It was also the first to take delivery of the Boeing 707 outside the USA in 1959.
The carrier was also a leader in using the Flight Data Recorder to monitor plane and crew performance in 1962, according to the website.
AirlineRatings.com says that 2013 was the safest year for flying since 1945, with 269 deaths from 29 accidents.
That’s well below the 10-year average of 32 accidents and 719 fatalities, according to the Aviation Safety Network.
The worst accident was the Nov. 17 crash of a Tatarstan Boeing 737-500 from Moscow to Kazan, which killed all 44 passengers and six crew aboard.
The most miraculous escape, AirlineRatings.com says, was the Asiana crash at San Francisco International Airport in July. Three passengers died when the Boeing 777 hit the runway sea wall and flipped over.
Worst Crashes
Date Aircraft Airline Fatalities Location
Jan 29 CRJ SCAT 21 Almaty Airport. Kazakhstan
July 7 DHC-3T Turbine Otter Rediske Air 10 Soldotna Airport, USA
Oct 3 Embraer Brasilia Associated 16 Lagos, Nigeria
Oct 14 Cessna 208B AereoServicio 14 Loreto Airport. Mexico
Oct 16 ATR-72-212A Lao Airlines 49 Pakse Airport, Laos
Nov 17 Boeing 737 Tatarstan 50 Kazan Airport. Russia
Nov 29 Embraer ERJ 190 LAM 33 Bwabwata NP Zambia
Lowest Ranked Airlines
One Star
Kam Air
Scat
Bluewing Airlines
Two Star
Afghan Airways
Daallo Airlines
Eritrean Airlines
Lion Air
Merpati Airlines
Susi Air
Air Bagan
Ten Best Airlines *
Qantas
Air New Zealand
Emirates
Etihad
Cathay Pacific
Singapore Airlines
Virgin Atlantic
EVA Air
All Nippon Airways
Royal Jordanian
* Rated seven stars for safety and product.
【10大最安全航空公司】2013年448家航空公司安全排行榜出炉：1）澳洲航空，2）新西兰航空，3）阿联酋航空，4）阿提哈德航空，5）国泰航空，6）新加坡航空，7）维珍大西洋航空，8）长荣航空，9）全日空，10）约旦皇家航空。同获最高7星安全评价的还包括香港航空、香港快运、阿航、阿提哈德、国泰、新航、加航、Westjet、国航、南航、东航、海航、深航、上航、川航、厦航、山航、天航、吉祥航空、华航、长荣、澳洲捷星、新加坡捷星等。
廉航方面，香港快运、澳洲捷星、新加坡捷星均为满分7星。春秋航空、酷航、日本捷星、香草航空、亚航X、印尼亚航、印尼虎航、新加坡虎航5星。澳洲虎航、越南捷星、马印航空、比基尼航空、飞萤航空、马来西亚亚航、泰国亚航4星。