Etihad, Emirates ranked among world's safest airlines

Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways has been named the world’s safest full-service airline for 2026 by AirlineRatings, placing the UAE carrier at the top of a global list of 320 airlines assessed for safety, operations and product standards.

Dubai’s flagship carrier, Emirates, ranked fifth on AirlineRatings’ list, with Dubai-based flydubai also featuring in the Top 25 in its category, highlighting the UAE’s growing influence in global aviation safety and operations. Regional heavyweight Qatar Airways also featured on the list.

The annual rankings are seen as a key benchmark for airline safety worldwide. The AirlineRatings methodology looks at a range of factors, including incident rates adjusted for total flights, fleet age, serious incidents, pilot training and international safety audits.

For 2026, greater emphasis was placed on turbulence prevention, which remains the leading cause of in-flight injuries. Airlines’ participation in the IATA Turbulence Aware programme and onboard safety audits also played a key role.

AirlineRatings said this is the first time a Gulf airline has ranked number one position in its full-service airline safety rankings.

Etihad was ranked ahead of major global carriers including Cathay Pacific, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, ANA, and British Airways.

According to AirlineRatings, Etihad achieved the top position due to its young fleet, strong cockpit safety systems, excellent turbulence management, crash-free history and the lowest incident rate per flight among all airlines on the list.

The airline also took part in an independent onboard safety audit and demonstrated strong adherence to cabin safety and turbulence procedures.

Top 25 Safest Low-Cost Airlines for 2026 include Jetstar, Scoot, easyJet, Wizz Air Group, Ryanair, AirAsia and Southwest.

AirlineRatings said airlines operating fewer than 25 aircraft were excluded from the assessment to ensure consistency while evaluating high-frequency operators.

“Notable changes this year include the inclusion of Spring Airlines China, the first Chinese airline to appear on any of our rankings, and AirBaltic, which has made a significant jump into the top 10," said AirlineRatings chief executive Sharon Petersen.

"HK Express claimed the top accolade for a second time, driven by a modern fleet, an exceptionally low incident rate, and an almost flawless onboard safety audit," said Petersen.

Petersen said the 2026 rankings reflect just how close the world’s safest airlines now are.

“Less than four points covered positions one through 14, and at the very top the margins were even tighter, with just 1.3 points separating positions one through six,” she said, adding that all airlines in the Top 25 are global leaders in aviation safety.

She stressed that small numerical differences should not be interpreted as major safety gaps, and that claims one airline is significantly safer than another are misleading.

Petersen noted that while all airlines on the list have recorded incidents over time, the actual rate per flight is extremely low, highlighting the overall safety of modern aviation.