The number of people killed in aircraft accidents rose by more than 100 last year, new figures show.
There were 23 fatal accidents in 2010 resulting in 786 deaths, compared to 18 the previous year with 685 fatalities, according to IATA.
A total of 94 accidents were recorded compared to 90 in 2009.
Seventeen western-built jet aircraft were lost in accidents compared to 19 in 2009.
This led to IATA claiming that the year’s accident rate for western-built jet aircraft was the lowest in aviation history.
“The 2010 global accident rate was 0.61. That is equal to one accident for every 1.6 million flights. This is a significant improvement of the 0.71 rate recorded in 2009 – one accident for 1.4 million flights,” IATA said.
“The 2010 rate was the lowest in aviation history, just below the 2006 rate of 0.65.”
The organisation added that 2.4 billion people flew safely on 36.8 million flights – 28.4 million on jets and 8.4 million on turboprops.
IATA CEO and director general Giovanni Bisignani said: “Safety is the number one priority. Achieving the lowest accident rate in the history of aviation shows that this commitment is bearing results.
“Flying is safe. But every fatality is a human tragedy that reminds us of the ultimate goal of zero accidents and zero fatalities. We must remain focused and determined to move closer to this goal year by year.”
IATA member airlines outperformed the industry average with a western-built jet hull loss rate of 0.25 – equivalent to one accident for every four million flights.
The IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) became a condition of membership of the organisation from 2009.
All 234 IATA member airlines are now on the IOSA registry. The IOSA registry is open to all airlines and it currently consists of over 350 airlines.
“The numbers tell the story. In the first full year after the IOSA became a condition of IATA membership, the accident rate for IATA carriers has never been so low,” said Bisignani.
“The data confirms that IOSA is helping to drive safety improvements around the world.
“It is an important part of a comprehensive safety strategy involving governments and industry working together to further reduce the number of accidents and fatalities.”