America's Deadliest Airline Crashes
You may be aware of the recent, devastating midair collision near Washington, DC between an Army helicopter and a jetliner that took the lives of all 67 people on board. This horrific accident has now been considered the deadliest US air disaster in almost a quarter century.
Fatal crashes involving commercial aircraft in the US are actually rare—but not unheard of. Here are some of the deadliest commercial plane crashes in America, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.
January 13, 1982
During the brisk of winter, in January of 1982, an Air Florida flight crashed into the 14th Street Bridge and plummeted into the Potomac River, taking the lives of 70 passengers and four crew members. Seven occupied vehicles on the bridge were also struck, causing four additional fatalities.
The crash was apparently caused by bad weather.
July 9, 1982
Later in the year, a Pan American World Airways flight crashed shortly after takeoff near New Orleans, Louisiana. It collided with trees and houses, and took the lives of 145 people onboard, as well as people on the ground.
The plane had apparently been forced down by a microburst shortly after takeoff.
Clint Groves, Wikimedia Commons
August 2, 1985
A few short years later, during a horrific thunderstorm, a Delta Air Lines flight crashed as it was approaching the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. It struck a car and two water tanks on impact. Sadly, 136 passengers and crew members perished in the accident, and 25 others were severely injured. One person on the ground also died.
August 16, 1987
In 1987, a Northwest Airlines flight crashed just after taking off in Romulus, Michigan. It struck light poles and a rental car facility before its devastating impact on the ground. The crash took the lives of 148 passengers and six crew members. On the ground, two people perished and five others were injured.
The sole survivor was a four-year-old girl who sustained serious injuries. At the time, this tragic accident was the second-deadliest aviation accident in the US.
G B_NZ, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
July 19, 1989
In summer of 1989, a United Airlines flight experienced an engine failure and crashed while attempting to land in Sioux City, Iowa. The impact took the lives of 120 passengers and crew members. An additional 171 people were injured.
While the loss was immense, 184 people survived the crash. Afterward, test pilots in simulators were unable to reproduce a survivable landing—so it has now been termed “The Impossible Landing” as it is considered one of the most impressive landings ever performed in the history of aviation.
DavidCB, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
September 8, 1994
Five years later, a USAir flight crashed while trying to land in Pittsburgh. The impact was so bad that the entire airplane was destroyed by the fire, and 127 passengers and five crew members lost their lives.
The National Transportation Safety Board determined the cause of the crash was due to equipment malfunction.
October 31, 1994
Less than two months later, on Halloween, an American Eagle flight in Roselawn, Indiana, lost control and crashed into a field at extremely high speed, taking the lives of 64 passengers and four crew members. Severe icing conditions are to blame.
May 11, 1996
In the spring of 1996, a Valujet Airlines flight crashed into the Florida Everglades only 10 minutes after taking off from the Miami International Airport. All 110 people on board lost their lives. The crash is said to have been caused by a fire in the cargo compartment where oxygen generators were apparently mislabeled and improperly stored.
Unfortunately for Valujet, the airline already had a poor safety record before the crash, and the accident brought widespread attention to the airline’s problems.
FAA, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
July 17, 1996
A couple months later, a Trans World Airlines flight exploded and crashed into the Atlantic Ocean near East Moriches, New York, on its way to Paris, France. The airplane was absolutely destroyed, and all 230 people on board perished.
This devastating accident was the third-deadliest aviation accident in US history, and the extensive investigation that followed also makes history.
NTSBgov, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
January 31, 2000
In winter of 2000, an Alaska Airlines flight crashed into the Pacific Ocean near Anacapa Island, California following a catastrophic loss of pitch control. All 88 people on board lost their lives.
The investigation determined that the crash was a result of inadequate maintenance leading to excessive wear and eventual failure of a critical flight control system during flight.
Petty Officer 1st Class Spike Call, U.S. Navy, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
September 11, 2001
The 9/11 terrorist attack took the lives of over 3,000 people as al-Qaida hijackers seized control of four jetliners, sending two of the planes into New York’s World Trade Center, a third into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, and the fourth into a field in western Pennsylvania. It remains the deadliest terror attack in history.
Doug Welty, FEMA, Public domain, Wikimedia CommonsNovember 12, 2001
A couple short months later, a regularly scheduled American Airlines flight crashed into a residential neighborhood of Belle Harbor, New York, shortly after taking off. All 260 people on board perished, along with five people on the ground.
While a terrorist attack was speculated, considering the timing of the accident, the investigation ultimately determined that the cause of the crash was due to an overuse of rudder controls in response to wake turbulence.
December 19, 2005
While not a commercial flight, shortly before Christmas in 2005, a Chalk’s Ocean Airways Flight crashed off Miami Beach, Florida, taking the lives of all 20 people on board. The crash was said to be caused by metal fatigue on the starboard wing resulting in separation of the wing from the fuselage.
August 27, 2006
In the late summer of 2006, a Comair aircraft crashed while taking off in Lexington, Kentucky, after it mistakenly used the wrong runway—one that was too short to safely take off. As a result, two crewmembers and all 47 passengers lost their lives.
February 12, 2009
In February of 2009, a Colgan Air plane crashed into a residential house near Buffalo, New York, taking the lives of everyone on board, plus one person inside the home, bringing the death toll to 50.
The crash is said to have been caused by the pilots' inappropriate response to stall warnings.
July 6, 2013
On July 6, 2013, an Asiana Airlines flight crashed as it was approaching the San Francisco International Airport. While only three people perished in the accident, many more were severely injured. Four flight attendants were thrown onto the runway while still strapped in their seats after the tail of the plane broke off during impact. The cause of the crash was said to be due to pilot error.
The very next day, a charter flight in Alaska stalled and crashed during takeoff, due to overloading, and took the lives of all 10 people on board.
April 17, 2018
In spring of 2018, a Southwest Airlines flight experienced engine failure shortly after departing from New York—LaGuardia Airport. The engine cowl was broken in the failure, and cowl fragments damaged the fuselage, shattering a cabin window and causing explosive depressurization of the aircraft.
Only one passenger lost their life, however, several more were severely injured.
May 13, 2019
In May of 2019, two smaller commercial floatplanes in Alaska conducting sightseeing tours collided in mid-air, resulting in six fatalities and 10 severely injured.
A few months later on October 17, 2019, a PenAir flight also from Alaska, overshot the runway during landing and crashed, taking the life of one passenger and severely injuring 12 others when a propeller blade penetrated the fuselage.
January 26, 2020
This tragic helicopter crash made headlines due to the nature of the accident, and who was on board. A Sikorsky commercial helicopter crashed in the city of Calabasas, California on its way to Camarillo Airport.
All nine people on board, including retired professional basketball player Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, lost their lives.
The helicopter apparently entered low cloud cover, which caused the pilot to lose his sense of orientation, and thus lose control of the helicopter.
September 4, 2022
While also not a large, commercial flight, on September 4, 2022 a West Isle Air floatplane carrying tourists nosedived and crashed into the waters of Mutiny Bay near Whidbey Island, taking the lives of all 10 people on board.
Witnesses recalled a “chaotic scene,” with strong gasoline smells and an impact that “disintegrated” the airplane. The plane sank in about 200 feet of water with the occupants trapped inside.
Investigations attributed the crash to mechanical failure.
Steve Barnes, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
January 29, 2025
On January 29, 2025, an American Airlines flight and a US Army Black Hawk helicopter collided mid-air over the Potomac River near Washington, DC. All 64 people on board the plane, including a group of young figure skaters, lost their lives, along with the three soldiers in the helicopter.
This tragic accident is considered the deadliest US air crash since 2001.
As of the time of writing this article, the investigation as to what caused the crash is still underway.
U.S. Coast Guard USCGHQ by Petty Officer 1st Class Brandon Giles, Wikimedia Commons
Final Thoughts
Despite the recent loss of life observed across the country, deaths from air travel are statistically rare. According to USA Facts, 796 people died during U.S. air travel from 2002 to 2022. In fact, only 27% of those occurred during scheduled commercial flights.
It is still accurate to say that plane travel is among the safest modes of transportation.
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