This carrier beat Qantas and Air NZ in world’s safest airline rankings

The annual World’s Safest Airlines rankings by AirlineRatings have just landed. These are the results for 2026.

From rigorous pilot training and intricate engineering to smarter ways of managing turbulence, a lot more goes into air safety than passengers see. Each year, airline safety and product ratings site AirlineRatings pulls back the curtain with its World’s Safest Airlines list – and the 2026 rankings have just been revealed.

Drawn from a pool of 320 carriers worldwide, the Top 25 Safest Full-Service Airlines for 2026 spotlight the carriers setting global benchmarks for safety and operational excellence. 

This year, there’s a new name at the top. Knocking Air New Zealand off its multi-year pedestal, Etihad has been named the safest airline in the world for 2026. AirlineRating CEO Sharon Petersen says this is the first year a Gulf carrier has been crowned the number one airline.

“Etihad achieved [the top ranking] 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,” Petersen said. “The airline also participated in our independent onboard safety audit and demonstrated excellent adherence to turbulence management in the cabin.” 

Qantas has once again featured in the World’s Best Airlines list. (Image: Unsplash/David Syphers)

While Air New Zealand dropped to number six, Cathay Pacific rose from equal third in 2025 (tied with Qatar Airways and Emirates) to second place in 2026.  

Australia’s national airline, Qantas, dropped from second place in 2025 to third this year, with Qatar and Emirates securing the fourth and fifth slots, respectively.  

While some slots have shifted this year, Peterson stresses that the rankings do not necessarily indicate a significant difference in safety levels. “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. 

“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.” 

How are the world’s safest airlines judged?

(Image: Unsplash/Hanson Lu)

AirlineRatings attributes a one- to seven-star safety rating to each airline listed on their website. These ratings are based on a number of factors, including: 

• Pilot-related incidents 

• Fatal accidents over the last 10 years 

• International safety audits such as the IOSA, ICAO country safety audit and EU airline bans 

For the annual World’s Safest Airlines list, AirlineRatings conducts a deeper investigation into all the airlines that have earned a seven-star safety rating. They carefully select the top performers from this group across different categories, taking into consideration fleet age, pilot training and incident rates adjusted for the total number of flights. 

In terms of criteria and methodology, Peterson says this year they placed “greater emphasis on turbulence prevention, as it remains the leading cause of in-flight injuries.”   

The top 25 full-service airlines for 2026

1. Etihad 
2. Cathay Pacific 
3. Qantas 
4. Qatar 
5. Emirates 
6. Air New Zealand 
7. Singapore Airlines 
8. EVA Air 
9. Virgin Australia 
10. Korean Air 
11. STARLUX 
12. Turkish Airlines 
13. Virgin Atlantic 
14. ANA 
15. Alaska Airlines 
16. TAP Air Portugal 
17. SAS 
18. British Airways 
19. Vietnam Airlines 
20. Iberia 
21. Lufthansa 
22. Air Canada 
23. Delta2 
24. American Airlines
25. Fiji Airways 

The top 25 safest low-cost airlines for 2026

1. HK Express 
2. Jetstar Airways 
3. Scoot 
4. flydubai (Now considered a full-service airline and will be assessed accordingly in future publications.) 
5. EasyJet Group 
6. Southwest 
7. airBaltic 
8. VietJet Air 
9. Wizz Air Group 
10. AirAsia Group4 
11. TUI UK 
12. Vueling 
13. Norwegian 
14. JetBlue 
15. FlyNAS 
16. Cebu Pacific 
17. Jet2 
18. Ryanair Ireland and UK 
19. Spring Airlines China 
20. Transavia Group 
21. Eurowings Group 
22. Volaris6 
23. WestJet Group 
24. GOL 
25. SKY Airline Chile