Aircraft age is not a safety factor. However, if the aircraft is older and hasn't been refurbished properly, it may cause flyers some inconvenience such as overheating, faulty air conditioning, or faulty plumbing in the lavatory.
Unlike cars and houses, airplanes are inspected annually and maintained to a high standard. As long as the pilot puts the time and money into it, and takes it to a mechanic experienced in the peculiarities of the type, it is indeed safe to fly a 40-year-old airplane.
Just like a car, the older an airplane gets the more maintenance it requires. Just like a car, however, given the proper care and maintenance an older plane can be just as safe and operable as a new version, albeit without some of the fuel efficient designs of new models.
You may have heard that flying is safer than travelling in a car by a wide margin, and that is absolutely true. Flying is safer than ever, and the statistics bear that out. Overall, you have a one in 5,000 chance of dying in a car accident and only a one in 7.9 million chance of dying in a plane crash.
14 – Bleriot XI airworthy at the Shuttleworth Collection in Old Warden, Bedfordshire. Built in 1909 and now with the British civil registration G-AANG, this is the world's oldest airworthy aircraft. It is powered by a three-cylinder "W form" Anzani engine.
The oldest active 747 aircraft today
The aircraft built on 13th June 1973 and is 49.81 years old at the time of writing. The oldest passenger aircraft in commercial operation is Boeing 747-400 EP-MEE (SN 24383) operated by Mahan Air, a privately owned Iranian airline.
In the 1930s flight in heavier-than-air aeroplanes was still in its infancy. The Wright brothers had made the first such flight only in 1903. Aeroplanes were flimsy with some parts of the fuselage still covered with cloth, to save weight. Engines were underpowered and unreliable.
The Australian airline has been a leader in the development of the Future Air Navigation System; the flight data recorder to monitor plane and later crew performance; automatic landings using the Global Navigation Satellite System as well as precision approaches around mountains in all weather using RNP.
Commercial plane crashes are nowadays very rare, with approximately 45,000 flights typically completed each day in the US, all without fatality. That's a number that continues to rise, post Covid.
Commercial airplanes have to abide by strict safety standards regardless of the ticket class that the passengers are sitting in. As technology in the industry has advanced to have passenger safety as a principal consideration, airplane seats can withstand 16 times gravity's force.
Aircraft age is not a safety factor. However, if the aircraft is older and hasn't been refurbished properly, it may cause flyers some inconvenience such as overheating, faulty air conditioning, or faulty plumbing in the lavatory.
The Embraer ERJ series has had more than 1,200 units built, and few hull losses since entering service in April 1997. Therefore, the ERJ135/140/145 members of the family are among the safest airliners in history.
"Ability to travel is not a function of age," says Schaefer, who writes a blog about senior travel. "It's determined by your physical and mental fitness."
If you are older than 75, the federal Transportation Safety Agency will make special accommodations for you when it comes to going through security. However, you may experience some delay if you have a wearable medical device or medical equipment, which must get checked separately. Best seats.
Lifespan of a commercial aircraft:
On average, a commercial aircraft can last between 20 to 30 years. However, some aircraft can last longer with proper maintenance and repairs. Boeing and Airbus are two of the most prominent commercial aircraft manufacturers globally.
On average, a plane can fly for 30 years before it needs to be retired. Usually, a plane's life span isn't measured in years but rather in pressurization cycles. Every time a plane takes flight, it is pressurized, which puts stress on the fuselage and the wings. This is called metal fatigue.
However, statistically speaking, a seat close to an exit in the front or rear, or a middle seat in the back third of the plane offers the lowest fatality rate. That said, flying is still the safest form of transport.
#1: The Tenerife Airport Disaster
The deadliest aviation accident in history actually occurred while on the ground, not in the air. In 1977, two fully loaded Boeing 747 passenger jets collided in the middle of a runway on Tenerife Island, killing 583 people.
Qantas has reason to celebrate after a horror few years after being named the world's safest airline for 2023. The Australian airline has regained AirlineRatings.com's top spot for safety, beating last year's winner Air New Zealand by “the finest of margins”.
The last deadly Qantas accident was in 1951 when a de Havilland DH. 84 Dragon crashed in the Central Highlands of New Guinea killing all three people aboard.
It's not the first time that Qantas has won: The 100-year-old Australian carrier was named the world's safest airline from 2014 to 2017. In 2018, it was in the top 20 when AirlineRatings awarded 20 airlines jointly. Then it won again for three years in a row: 2019, 2020 and 2021.
The first manned flight was on November 21, 1783, the passengers were Jean-Francois Pilatre de Rozier and Francois Laurent. George Cayley worked to discover a way that man could fly.
Nervous fliers of the Sixties and Seventies also had to the contend with the fact that flying was - statistically speaking - up to 77 times more dangerous. The deadliest year in aviation history? That was 1972, when 72 accidents resulted in 2,373 fatalities.
Aviation's 'golden age': The 1950s and 1960s have now nostalgically become known as air travel's "golden age." First class on a Pan Am flight: Not many could afford to sample the luxury on board. The most likely frequent flier was a white, male businessman traveling on his company's expense account.