The visualization above shows the airline with the most crashes. It is based on data from Curcio & Casciato as of 2025.
A widely cited ranking of airlines with the most plane crashes factors in more than just mechanical failures and pilot error.
Two of American Airlines’ crashes and two of United’s come from the September 11, 2001 hijackings, folded into the same tally as routine aviation accidents.
TL;DR
- American Airlines and Air France are tied for the most plane crashes on record, 11 each
- Two of those crashes came from the 9/11 hijackings, not mechanical failure or pilot error
- Factor in airline mergers, and the real numbers climb even higher
| wdt_ID | wdt_created_by | wdt_created_at | wdt_last_edited_by | wdt_last_edited_at | Rank | Airline | Number of Plane Crashes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | 1 | American Airlines | 11 |
| 2 | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | 2 | Air France | 11 |
| 3 | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | 3 | China Airlines | 9 |
| 4 | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | 4 | Korean Air | 9 |
| 5 | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | 5 | Pakistan International Airlines | 8 |
| 6 | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | 6 | United Airlines | 7 |
| 7 | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | 7 | Egyptair | 6 |
| 8 | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | 8 | Ethiopian Airlines | 6 |
| 9 | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | 9 | Thai Airways | 6 |
| 10 | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | Monica Ebunoluwa | 19/08/2026 10:22 AM | 10 | American Eagle | 5 |
A widely cited ranking of the world’s most crash-prone airlines has a catch buried inside it.
According to an analysis by Curcio & Casciato, a Chicago aviation accident law firm, American Airlines and Air France are tied for the most plane crashes on record, 11 apiece.
But that total isn’t made up entirely of mechanical failures and pilot error.
Two of American’s crashes, and two of United Airlines’ seven, come from the hijackings of September 11, 2001, folded into the same count as routine aviation accidents.
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Mergers Change the Math
The tie at the top isn’t the whole story either. Two of aviation’s biggest mergers are hiding bigger numbers behind familiar airline names.
American Eagle, American Airlines’ regional affiliate, operates 5 of its own aircraft. Add that to American’s 11, and the “American” family total reaches 16, clear of everyone else on the list.
United Airlines tells a similar story. United, at 7 crashes, merged with Continental Airlines, at 5, back in 2012. Combine their histories and the total comes to 12, one more crash than the tie for first place between American and Air France.
Two other names on the list no longer exist as standalone carriers.
Continental is now part of United, and Indian Airlines, sitting at 4 crashes, merged into Air India back in 2011.
Not Every Crash Tells the Same Story
Beyond the 9/11 figures, the ranking raises a broader question about what a raw crash count can and can’t tell you.
EgyptAir sits mid-table with 6 crashes, the same total as Ethiopian Airlines, whose 2019 disaster, tied to a design flaw in the Boeing 737 MAX, led to the worldwide grounding of that entire aircraft model. The count also spans decades without even a start date.
The research draws mainly from the 1980s through the early 2000s, with some later incidents added in, meaning older airlines have simply had more time on the books to accumulate history.
ELI5
A widely cited list ranks airlines by total plane crashes, and American Airlines and Air France are tied for the most.
But some of those crashes were actually the 9/11 hijackings, not accidents.
And once you add in airlines that later merged, like United and Continental, the real numbers climb even higher.
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