airline safety

Iberia safety record

Iberia hasn't had a fatal accident on its own flights since 1985 — more than forty years. On airlines like Iberia, the chance of a passenger dying in an accident is about 1 in 80 million per flight.

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No one on board has died in an accident since 1985
Chance of dying in an accident, per flight1 in 80 million

For airlines based in Spain and the other countries in the same safety group, 2018–2022 (MIT study).

Put another way: if you took a flight every single day, you would, on average, fly for about 219,000 years before a fatal accident happened to you.

the record

More than forty years without a fatal accident

Iberia's last fatal accident was in February 1985, when a Boeing 727 descending towards Bilbao hit a television antenna on Monte Oiz below the safe altitude; all 148 on board died. Two years earlier, a runway collision in thick fog at Madrid killed 51 people on an Iberia 727 and 42 on a DC-9 of Aviaco, which had strayed onto the runway.

The early 1970s had two more: at Ibiza in 1972, where a Caravelle flew into a mountain on approach, and near Nantes in 1973, where a DC-9 collided in mid-air with another airliner while military controllers were covering a French air-traffic strike. Aviaco — a Spanish state airline in which Iberia held a minority stake until it took it over in the late 1990s — is shown separately on the line below.

Since 1985, Iberia's own flights have gone four decades without a fatal accident.

since 1970

Every fatal accident, on one line

Solid dots are its own flights; hollow ones were flown by a partner or subsidiary under its name; grey rings are hijackings and attacks. Deaths that investigators don't class as accidents (such as trespassers) aren't shown.

197019801990200020102020
Its own flights Partner, subsidiary or predecessor airline flights
  1. Feb 1985 IB610 · Boeing 727 · Monte Oiz, near BilbaoHit a television antenna on Monte Oiz while descending towards Bilbao below the safe altitude (Spanish investigation).
  2. Dec 1983 IB350 · Boeing 727 · Madrid-BarajasRunway collision in thick fog at Madrid: an Aviaco DC-9 strayed onto the active runway while the Iberia 727 was taking off.
  3. Aug 1973 Aviaco 118 · Sud Aviation Caravelle · A CoruñaAn Aviaco Caravelle crashed on approach in fog. Aviaco was then a Spanish state airline in which Iberia held a minority stake; it merged into Iberia in 1999.
  4. Mar 1973 Aviaco ferry flight · Sud Aviation Caravelle · off Funchal, MadeiraAn Aviaco Caravelle on a ferry flight from Madrid crashed into the sea on approach to Funchal; its 3 crew died.
  5. Mar 1973 IB504 · McDonnell Douglas DC-9 · near NantesCollided in mid-air with a Spantax Convair 990, which landed safely, while French military controllers were handling traffic during a civil air-traffic controllers' strike.
  6. Jul 1972 Aviaco ferry flight · Douglas DC-8 · off Gran CanariaAn Aviaco DC-8 on a ferry flight from Madrid to Las Palmas crashed into the sea; the 10 people on board died. Aviaco was then a Spanish state airline in which Iberia held a minority stake.
  7. Jan 1972 IB602 · Sud Aviation Caravelle · IbizaFlew into a mountain on approach to Ibiza after descending below the minimum altitude for the visual approach.
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at a glance

Iberia in numbers

Founded
1927
Country
Spain
Alliance
oneworld
Main hubs
Madrid-Barajas
IATA safety audit (IOSA)
Registered
the fleet

What Iberia flies

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on the day

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An iPhone Lock Screen showing the FlyBud Live Activity: Barcelona to Istanbul, gate B23, boarding, with the same flight in the Dynamic Island at the top of the screen.

Iberia safety questions

How safe is Iberia?

Iberia hasn't had a fatal accident on its own flights since 1985 — more than forty years. On airlines like Iberia, the chance of a passenger dying in an accident is about 1 in 80 million per flight. Every fact on this page is sourced — the list is at the bottom.

What is Iberia's safety rating?

FlyBud doesn't invent a score. What matters is the record, which you can check: no one on board has died in an accident on an Iberia flight since 1985 — more than forty years. It is registered with IATA's operational safety audit (IOSA), which registered airlines must renew every two years.

Has Iberia ever crashed?

Yes, in the past: its last fatal accident was near Bilbao in 1985. Iberia's own flights have not had one since.

sources

Where these facts come from

Every fact on this page is from official accident reports, the airline's own filings or the published accident record.

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