A recent poll conducted by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research reveals a slight decline in Americans’ confidence in air travel safety and the federal agencies responsible for maintaining it. While most still believe that air transportation is generally safe, the survey showed that 64% of U.S. adults consider plane travel to be either “very safe” or “somewhat safe,” down from 71% the previous year. Additionally, about 2 in 10 adults now perceive air transportation as very or somewhat unsafe, compared to 12% in 2024.
Faith in the government agencies overseeing air safety also waned, with just over half of U.S. adults expressing “a great deal” or “a moderate amount” of confidence in their ability to ensure safe air travel. This marks a decrease from around 6 in 10 adults the previous year.
The poll took place from Feb. 6-10, following the Jan. 30 incident involving an American Airlines passenger jet colliding with an Army helicopter in Washington, D.C., but before a Delta jet overturned while landing in Toronto. The tragic Washington collision, claiming the lives of all 67 individuals on board, was the deadliest aviation disaster in the U.S. since 2001. The slight decline in confidence suggests that these events may have unsettled some Americans. The 2024 poll was conducted after another incident involving an Alaska Airlines jetliner in Oregon, where a panel blew off, causing a significant breach in the aircraft’s side.
Overall, Americans view traveling by plane as approximately as safe as walking or driving, with about two-thirds considering both walking and driving safe modes of transportation. Only about half of U.S. adults perceive local subway, metro, or light rail systems as safe, consistent with findings from 2024.
Following the Washington crash, President Donald Trump attributed the incident to federal diversity and inclusion promotion efforts and assured the public of the safety of air travel. This may explain the decreased trust among Democrats and independents, but not Republicans.
Independents’ confidence in the safety of plane travel notably dropped, from about 6 in 10 considering it safe the previous year to around 4 in 10 currently. Democrats, on the other hand, slightly decreased from three-quarters in 2024 to about 7 in 10 now who believe plane travel is safe. Republicans’ views on air travel safety remained unchanged.
Democrats and independents also showed diminished faith in the government’s capacity to ensure air safety compared to four years ago. While the poll was conducted before the dismissal of probationary Federal Aviation Administration employees, the shift in administration from Joe Biden to Trump likely contributed to some of the change.
In January 2024, when Biden was in office, about 7 in 10 Democrats expressed high confidence in federal government agencies regarding air safety. Now, only 6 in 10 Democrats share this sentiment. Independents’ trust also
The margin of error for this survey is plus or minus 4.1 percentage points.
