The 2024 Annual Safety Review (ASR) of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is now available online. The 2024 edition examines the safety performance of the European aviation system in 2023. This analysis, along with other evaluations conducted by EASA in collaboration with national aviation authorities (NAAs) and industry, supports the safety risk management (SRM) process that informs decisions reflected in the European Plan for Aviation Safety (EPAS). Where risks are identified, further analysis is performed, and mitigation actions are included in the EPAS when necessary.
This year’s review introduces a new chapter focusing on unmanned aircraft system (UAS)/drone safety performance.
In 2023, air traffic reached 95% of pre-COVID levels from 2019. Europe’s airports welcomed a total of 2.3 billion passengers in 2023, with passenger traffic across the European airport network increasing by 19% compared to the previous year.
Globally, there have been around ten fatal accidents annually between 2020-2022; however, this number dropped to two fatal accidents in 2023. These two accidents resulted in 77 fatalities, marking a decrease compared to 2022 and representing the second-lowest fatality count in a decade, close to the record-low set in 2017 with 66 fatalities.
In Europe during 2023, there were 7.3 million safe flights without any fatal accidents involving a European operator for both complex and non-complex aeroplanes. While this is positive news, it was achieved through the entire industry’s commitment to prioritizing safety. “There is no room for complacency in aviation safety.”
