One finding in the scientific literature is that many individuals perceive air disasters to be relatively frequent events. In fact, they are perceived to occur more frequently than they do in reality.

The magnitude of the air disaster greatly influences this perception. Many major airline crashes often involve large numbers of deaths. The media, in turn, magnifies the importance of these disasters by covering them intensively. This situation creates a greater sense of dread surrounding airline crashes in general.

So what are the actual crash risks in airline transportation?