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In the wake of January’s tragic American Airlines crash—which claimed the lives of 67 passengers after Flight 5342 collided with a Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac en route to Washington, D.C.—many travelers have found themselves asking: Is it still safe to fly?

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The question is tough to answer as that crash wasn’t the only incident to rattle public confidence. Just a month later, a Southwest jet narrowly avoided a disaster while landing at Chicago Midway Airport, coming dangerously close to a private plane already on the runway. In 2024, an Alaska Airlines flight made headlines when a door panel blew off midair, exposing passengers to terrifying conditions at cruising altitude.

So, is it really safe to fly?

Understandably, these stories would trigger anxiety. But a broader look at the data helps put things in perspective. Between January 2024 and March 2025, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) reported 60 incidents involving commercial carriers in the U.S., according to CNN. About half of those incidents resulted in injuries to passengers or crew. That might sound alarming until you consider how many millions of flights occurred in the same period without issue.

In truth, fatal commercial airline crashes remain exceedingly rare. The Washington, D.C. crash was a tragic outlier. In fact, the last major fatal commercial crash in the U.S. before this year happened back in 2009, in Buffalo, New York. 

Here’s some more data that might calm your nerves. Statistically, flying remains one of the safest forms of transportation. A 2024 study published in the Journal of Air Transport Management puts the odds of dying in a U.S. commercial airline crash at around 1 in 13.7 million. Furthermore, 94% of major passenger jet accidents between 2001 and 2017 had full survival rates, the NTSB reported in 2020.

Does your seat choice affect survival? Experts say yes.

So in short, it’s still safe to fly, but when accidents arise, safety experts say you should always wear your seatbelt. You may also want to think wisely about where you sit on a plane. Choosing a seat near the back could protect you more than flying up in the front in first class. 

In a Vice interview published June 9, aviation safety expert Daniel Kwasi Adjekum of the University of North Dakota explained that where you sit on a plane can influence your odds of surviving a crash—especially if the aircraft comes in too low or veers off the runway. In those scenarios, the front of the plane typically takes the hardest hit, making seats in the rear statistically safer.

Proximity to emergency exits is another key factor. Safety analyst Ben Wu noted that the middle section of the plane—near the wings—is structurally reinforced and often located close to exit doors. That placement can be critical: shaving even a few seconds off your escape time in an emergency can be the difference between survival and tragedy.

But there’s a tradeoff. Those same middle-row seats are directly above the plane’s fuel tanks. If there’s a fire, you’ll need to act fast and get out quickly.

Of course, survival isn’t just about where you sit, it’s also about how prepared you are. Wu advised counting the rows to your nearest exit so you can find your way in low visibility. And Adjekum stressed perhaps the most important, if overlooked, piece of advice: pay attention to the safety briefing and listen to the flight crew.

Ultimately, while no seat is guaranteed to save you, smart choices and situational awareness can improve your odds when it counts.

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The post Flying Feels Riskier Than Ever—But These Seats Could Save Your Life  appeared first on MadameNoire.