I've been told flying is the safest was to travel. Was this true in 1990?

Question

I've been told flying is the safest was to travel. Was this true in 1990?

Answer 1

Specifically, flying SCHEDULED flights is safer than all other modes of transportation and this has been so since the 70's and early 80's.

During this time, scheduled air travel evolved to take on significant federal and international regulations. The standards systems and procedures put in place have made this mode of public transportation as safe as it is. The fact is that no other popular form of mass transit is forced to undergo as much rigid scrutiny - in equipment maintanance, upgrades, and human resource certification.

Note that this rule DOES NOT apply to private flights or chartered flights. Those flights are considered high risk (or at least higher risk than many forms of transportation). Private flights dont come under the same level of scrutiny. private aircraft are usually quite safe, but the pilots are not required to meet the same proficiency standards.