Commercial Aviation - Box
Commercial Aviation - Box
Aviation Fatalities Resulting from Sabotage, Suicide, or Terrorism
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), an independent government agency, tracks the number of U.S. aviation accidents and fatalities. NTSB includes all aviation fatalities resulting from illegal acts-sabotage, suicide, or terrorism-in its data. However, because these fatalities result from intentional acts of violence, rather than accidents, NTSB excludes them from its calculations of fatality rates.
According to NTSB statistics, illegal acts have resulted in 583 aviation fatalities since 1982 (the earliest year for which data are available) (see table below). However, although NTSB normally includes ground fatalities in its accounting of fatalities, the Board did not include the people killed on the ground as a result of the September 11 crashes.
An estimated 2,645 people were killed when two planes hit the World Trade Center in New York City. A third plane hit the Pentagon, killing 125 people inside the building. A fourth plane crashed in a field in rural Pennsylvania and did not result in any ground fatalities.
U.S. Air Carrier Fatalities Involving Illegal Acts: 1982-2001
| Year | Location | Operator | Aboard | Ground | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Honolulu, HI | Pan American | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1986 | Near Athens, Greece | Trans World | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| 1987 | San Luis Obispo, CA | Pacific Southwest | 43 | 0 | 43 |
| 1988 | Lockerbie, Scotland | Pan American | 259 | 11 | 270 |
| 1994 | Memphis, TN | Federal Express | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2001 | New York, NY | American Airlines | 92 | - | 92 |
| 2001 | New York, NY | United Airlines | 65 | - | 65 |
| 2001 | Arlington, VA | American Airlines | 64 | - | 64 |
| 2001 | Shanksville, PA | United Airlines | 44 | - | 44 |
| Total | 572 | 11 | 583 |
NOTE: Fatalities of approximately 3,000 people not on board have been excluded for the Sept. 11, 2001, crashes.
SOURCE: National Transportation Safety Board, Aviation Accidents, Fatalities, and Rates: 1982-2001 (Washington, DC: 2002), table 12.