airline safety

Singapore Airlines safety record

Singapore Airlines has had two fatal accidents on its passenger flights in more than fifty years: at Taipei in 2000, and in severe turbulence in 2024, when one passenger died. On airlines like Singapore Airlines, 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 2024
Chance of dying in an accident, per flight1 in 80 million

For airlines based in Singapore 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

Two fatal accidents in more than fifty years

In October 2000, flight 006 began its take-off at Taipei in a typhoon, in low visibility, on a runway that was partly closed for works instead of the parallel runway, and hit construction equipment; 83 people on board were killed. Taiwan's investigators found the crew had not confirmed they were on the right runway.

In May 2024, flight 321 from London met severe turbulence over Myanmar. One passenger died — Thailand's death certificate gives heart failure, and a UK inquest found cardiac arrest brought on by the turbulence — and 79 others were injured. Singapore's investigators found in their final report, in May 2026, that the aircraft passed over developing storm cells that its weather radar did not show; the report said the radar may have been under-reading, and its manufacturer found no fault.

SilkAir, its former regional subsidiary, lost flight 185 in Indonesia in 1997 with 104 people on board: Indonesia's investigators could not determine the cause, while the US NTSB concluded the evidence was consistent with deliberate action, most likely by the captain. An SIA training jet crashed in Thailand the same year, killing its two crew. In 1991 four men hijacked flight 117; Singapore commandos ended it, killing the hijackers, and no passengers or crew were killed.

since 1972

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.

19801990200020102020
Its own flights Partner, subsidiary or predecessor airline flights Hijackings and attacks
  1. May 2024 SQ321 · Boeing 777-300ER · Over Myanmar (diverted to Bangkok)Severe turbulence over developing storm cells that the weather radar did not show; one passenger died — Thailand's death certificate gives heart failure, and a UK inquest found cardiac arrest brought on by the turbulence — and 79 others were injured (Singapore TSIB final report, May 2026).
  2. Oct 2000 SQ006 · Boeing 747-400 · Taipei Chiang Kai-shek Airport, TaiwanIn a typhoon with low visibility, the crew began take-off on a parallel runway that was partly closed for works and hit construction equipment (Taiwan Aviation Safety Council final report).
  3. Dec 1997 SilkAir MI185 · Boeing 737-300 · Musi River, near Palembang, IndonesiaIndonesia's investigators could not determine the cause; the US NTSB concluded the evidence was consistent with deliberate flight-control input, most likely by the captain.
  4. Jul 1997 Training flight · Learjet 31 · Near Ranong, ThailandAn SIA-owned training jet descended below the minimum safe altitude in poor weather and hit terrain; both crew were killed.
  5. Mar 1991 SQ117 · Airbus A310 · Singapore Changi AirportHijacked by four men; Singapore commandos stormed the aircraft and killed the hijackers. No passengers or crew were killed.
your flight

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at a glance

Singapore Airlines in numbers

Founded
1972
Country
Singapore
Alliance
Star Alliance
Main hubs
Singapore
IATA safety audit (IOSA)
Registered
the fleet

What Singapore Airlines flies

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on the day

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Singapore Airlines safety questions

How safe is Singapore Airlines?

Singapore Airlines has had two fatal accidents on its passenger flights in more than fifty years: at Taipei in 2000, and in severe turbulence in 2024, when one passenger died. On airlines like Singapore Airlines, 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 Singapore Airlines' safety rating?

There is no single official safety rating for airlines; the scores some websites publish are their own formulas. What can be checked is the record: two fatal accidents on its passenger flights in more than fifty years, set out on this page. It is a member of IATA, the airlines' trade body, which requires its members to pass IATA's operational safety audit (IOSA).

What happened on Singapore Airlines flight 321?

In May 2024 the London–Singapore flight met severe turbulence over Myanmar and diverted to Bangkok. One passenger died — Thailand's death certificate gives heart failure, and a UK inquest found cardiac arrest brought on by the turbulence — and 79 others were injured. Singapore's investigators found the aircraft had passed over developing storm cells that did not show on its weather radar.

sources

Where these facts come from

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

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