Safety situation in commercial air transport

N.B: For up-to-date information on safety situation of commercial air transport, change language selection to Finnish. 

Safety of Commercial Air Transport 2023

The traffic volume in Finnish commercial air transport continued to grow compared to the previous year. However, compared to 2019, the year before the coronavirus pandemic, the numbers were still roughly 15% lower. 
The volume of all commercial air transport (Finnish and foreign) at Finnish airports also grew slightly compared to the previous year; however, it remained approximately 29% lower than in 2019. 

In 2022, the war in Ukraine caused major changes to flight routes when Russian airspace became closed to European operators. The situation remained the same in 2023. 
Disturbances in aircraft satellite navigation systems were still observed in the vicinity of conflict areas in particular. The bulletin  (External link)published by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency EASA on the topic was updated a few times during the year. The disturbances did not have any major impact with regard to aviation safety. 

In early 2023, all restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic as well as measures such as the monitoring of coronavirus in the wastewater at airports were ended. 

Globally, in 2023 in commercial air transport (aircraft that are allowed to transport 14 passengers or more) there were four fatal accidents in which 93 lives were lost. The numbers were clearly below the five-year average. In fact, the year was one of the safest on record. 
The most serious accident of the year took place in January, when control of the Yeti Airlines’ ATR 72 aircraft was lost during approach in Nepal and it crashed, killing 72 people. Source: Aviation Safety Network  (External link)

Accidents

In 2023, no accidents occurred in Finnish commercial air transport. 

No accidents occurred in foreign commercial air transport in Finland in 2023, either. 

During the year in February 2023, the Safety Investigation Authority Finland, published an investigation report (External link) concerning an accident that occurred to a foreign ambulance helicopter in Åland in 2022. In the case in question, the helicopter started to slide on an icy yard and hit a boathouse. The helicopter was seriously damaged and one crew member was slightly injured. As a result of the investigation, it was recommended, among other things, that anti-slip devices should be installed on helicopters equipped with skids. 

Accidents in Finnish commercial air transport are extremely rare in general. The last time an accident occurred was in 2020, when a member of the cabin crew fell down from the open door of the aircraft and was injured. SIA conducted the investigation L2020-01  (External link) (report in Finnish) into the incident.
The last accident before this involving Finnish aircraft in scheduled traffic occurred in 2005 (Copterline), and the previous accident in other commercial air transport (sightseeing flight) occurred in October 2016.

Occurrences are made proportional to the flight hour data collected e.g. from Finnish aircraft owners. The flight hour statistics  (External link)for 2023 will be compiled during spring 2024. Based on an initial estimate, the flight hours in commercial air transport increased by approx. 10% compared to 2022, i.e. to approx. 270,000 flight hours.
The calculated average for 2013-2023 based on this estimate was 0.2 accidents per 100,000 flight hours.

Browse accident statistics starting from 2005 using an interactive and updating report here. (External link)


List of accidents 2023

1. No accidents

Serious incidents 2023

In 2023, there were seven serious incidents in Finnish commercial air transport. The number was slightly above the average for 2013-2022 (5.9). 

Three cases involved a mid-air near miss with a drone. In fact, a drone flown too high in the wrong place has been the most common cause of a serious incident in recent years. Last year, all situations of this kind took place abroad between Finnish airliners and local drones. Abroad, the number of near misses caused by drones has clearly increased in the last few years. In contrast, the situation in Finland has been improving since 2018. Read more about the development of mid-air near misses (External link). 

Two serious incidents took place in winter conditions in medical helicopter activities. In one case, the helicopter had to take evasive action in order to prevent hitting a mast, and in the other, a helicopter on the ground started to slide forward on an icy road and its blades hit tree branches. 

The last two took place in August at Helsinki Airport. In one of them, an airliner collided with birds during takeoff and had to return to the airport. In the other case, a child passenger was about to get on the plane, but started running after a fallen hat and nearly collided with the rotating propeller of a plane that had just arrived on the apron. A ground handling company employee noticed the dangerous situation and managed to prevent any more severe consequences.

The flight hour information for 2023 will be compiled during spring 2024. Based on an initial estimate, the flight hours in commercial air transport increased by approx. 10% compared to 2022, i.e. to approx. 270,000 flight hours. According to this estimate, approx. 2.7 serious incidents would have occurred per 100,000 flight hours. The average for 2013-2022 was approx. 2.5 serious incidents, meaning that according to the preliminary information, last year was roughly at the same level as the previous years. 

Browse serious incidents starting from 2005 using an interactive and updating report here (External link). 

List of serious incidents 2023

1. February 2023: A medical helicopter had to take evasive action in order to evade a mast.
2. February 2023: A medical helicopter started to slide on the road that was used as the landing site, and the blades hit the branches of trees.
3. April 2023: A near miss between an airliner and a foreign drone.
4. July 2023: A near miss abroad between an airliner and a drone.
5. August 2023: When passengers were walking to an airliner on the apron, a gust of wind swept the hat off the head of a child passenger and tossed it close to a plane taxiing to the apron next to it. The child started to run after the hat without noticing or understanding the danger caused by the rotating propellers of the taxiing plane. A ground handling company employee noticed the dangerous situation and caught the child before any severe consequences occurred. 
6. August 2023: Several birds collided with an airliner and its engines during takeoff. The pilots reduced the power to one of the engines and landed successfully back at the airport.
7. September 2023: A near miss abroad between an airliner and a drone.