Plane crash deaths rose in 2020 despite pandemic

Dozens more died in large commercial plane crashes despite 42% drop in flights worldwide

The number of people killed in large commercial airplane crashes rose in 2020 to 299 worldwide despite a sharp decline in flights due to the coronavirus pandemic, a Dutch consulting firm has found.

In 2020 there were 40 accidents involving large commercial passenger planes, five of which were fatal, resulting in 299 fatalities. In 2019 there were nearly double the number of accidents - 86 - eight of which were fatal, resulting in 257 fatalities, said aviation consulting firm To70.