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Since 2014, over 2,500 people have died in commercial airline crashes, according to an analysis that categorized these accidents into three main causes: pilot suicide, mechanical failure combined with pilot error, and aircraft lost due to military activity or mid-air collisions outside the airline's control. The report highlights that pilot suicide has become the second most common cause of fatal commercial airline crashes during this period.
The analysis lists four major incidents attributed to pilot suicide: Malaysia Airlines MH370 in 2014 with 239 presumed dead; Germanwings 4U9525 in 2015 where the co-pilot deliberately crashed the plane killing 150; China Eastern MU5735 in 2022 with 132 fatalities amid indications of deliberate action; and Air India AI171 in 2025 with a possible total of 279 deaths if initial findings are confirmed. "If preliminary assessments of the 2025 Air India crash (Flight AI171) are confirmed to be the result of intentional pilot action, then pilot suicide will account for approximately 800 passenger deaths between 2014 and 2025."
Crashes caused by military shootdowns or mid-air collisions resulted in a total of 403 fatalities. Notable among these were Malaysia Airlines MH17 shot down over Ukraine in 2014 with 298 killed, Azerbaijan Airlines J2 8243 reportedly struck by a missile in 2024 resulting in 38 deaths, and PSA / American Airlines Flight 67 which collided with a helicopter in controlled airspace leading to the loss of all on board.
