World’s safest airlines 2026: Etihad, Emirates and Qatar in top five

AirlineRatings.com has named Etihad as the world’s safest full-service airline for 2026, marking the first time a Gulf carrier has taken the top position in the global safety rankings.

The annual rankings assessed 320 airlines, with AirlineRatings.com publishing its Top 25 Safest Full-Service Airlines and Top 25 Safest Low-Cost Airlines for 2026.

According to the organisation, the latest results highlight how increasingly narrow the differences have become among the world’s safest carriers.

Sharon Petersen, CEO of AirlineRatings.com, said the results show that traditional league-table rankings risk overstating differences between airlines.

She said: “What stands out this year is how little separates the leaders. 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 in the full-service category.

“We may be reaching a point where traditional rankings risk being misleading, and where grouping airlines into performance tiers provides a more accurate reflection of reality.

“All airlines in the Top 25 are world leaders in aviation safety, and claims that one is significantly safer or less safe than another are both sensationalist and false.”

World’s Safest Airlines 2026

Explaining the methodology behind the 2026 rankings, Petersen said AirlineRatings.com continues to use a consistent, data-led framework.

She said: “Much of our criteria remains consistent year on year and considers incident rates adjusted for the total number of flights, fleet age, serious incidents, pilot training and international safety audits.

“One change for this year is that we are placing a greater emphasis on turbulence prevention, as it remains the leading cause of in-flight injuries. To support this, we consider an airline’s participation in the IATA Turbulence Aware programme or equivalent, as well as the Airline Ratings onboard safety audit. Transparency from airlines is also critical to this process.”

Top 25 safest full-service airlines for 2026

• Etihad
• Cathay Pacific
• Qantas
• Qatar
• Emirates
• Air New Zealand
• Singapore Airlines
• EVA Air
• Virgin Australia
• Korean Air
• STARLUX
• Turkish Airlines
• Virgin Atlantic
• ANA
• Alaska Airlines
• TAP Air Portugal
• SAS
• British Airways
• Vietnam Airlines
• Iberia
• Lufthansa
• Air Canada
• Delta
• American Airlines
• Fiji Airways

Why Etihad ranked number one

Commenting on changes to the 2026 rankings, Petersen said Etihad’s rise to the top reflects a combination of structural and operational factors.

“This is the first year a Gulf carrier has taken the number one spot. Etihad achieved this through a combination of factors: a young fleet, advancements in cockpit safety, particularly around turbulence, a crash-free history, and the lowest incident rate per flight of any airline on the list.

“The airline also participated in our independent onboard safety audit and demonstrated excellent adherence to turbulence management in the cabin.”