15 worst airplane disasters since 2000

List of the 15 worst airplane disasters and accidents since 2000, in terms of combined onboard and ground fatalities :

Date : 11th September, 2001
Airline : American / United Airline
Aircraft : Two Boeing 767-200

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Location : New York, NY, USA
People on board : 92 and 65
Fatalities : 157 + 2606 on ground

11th September, 2001

September 11th terrorist attack in New York: two hijacked Boeing 767 smash into the World Trade Center in Manhattan (USA) making 2763 fatalities

Date : 17th July, 2014
Airline : Malaysia Airlines
Aircraft : Boeing 777-200

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Location : Donetsk, Ukraine
People on board : 298
Fatalities : 298

17th July, 2014

Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 with 298 people onboard shot down in Ukraine

The Boeing 777-200 operated by Malaysia Airlines took off from Amsterdam, Netherlands, for a passenger flight to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 283 passengers and 15 crewmember were onboard. The…

Date : 19th February, 2003
Airline : Iranian Revolutionary Guard
Aircraft : Ilyushin IL-76MD

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Location : SE Kerman, Iran
People on board : 275
Fatalities : 275

19th February, 2003

Iranian Revolutionary Guard Ilyushin IL-76MD with 275 people onboard crashes in Iran

The aircraft was on a flight from Zahedan to Kerman. It crashed 330 feet below the peak of Sirach Mountain approximately 35nm southeast of Kerman. Weather at the time of the accident was poor.…

Date : 11th April, 2018
Airline : Algerian Air Force
Aircraft : Ilyushin Il-76TD

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Location : Boufarik, Algeria
People on board : 257
Fatalities : 257

11th April, 2018

Algerian Air Force Ilyushin Il-76TD with 257 people onboard crashes in Algeria

The Ilyushin Il-76 operated by the Algerian Air Force took off from Boufarik, Algeria, for a military flight to Béchar Boudghene Ben Ali Lotfi Airport, Algeria. 247 soldiers with their…

Date : 8th March, 2014
Airline : Malaysia Airlines
Aircraft : Boeing 777-2H6ER

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Location : Indian Ocean, off Perth, Australia
People on board : 239
Fatalities : 239

8th March, 2014

Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 with 239 people onboard crashes in off Perth, Australia

The Boeing 777-200 operated by Malaysia Airlines took off from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for a passenger flight to Beijing, China. 226 passengers and 12 crew was onboard. The plane disappeared…

Date : 1st June, 2009
Airline : Air France
Aircraft : Airbus A330-203

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Location : Atlantic ocean
People on board : 228
Fatalities : 228

1st June, 2009

Air France Airbus A330 with 228 people onboard crashes in Atlantic ocean

The Air France Airbus A330-200 went missing on transatlantic flight from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to Paris, France. The airplane carried 12 crew members and 216 passengers. The plane crashed in…

Date : 25th May, 2002
Airline : China airlines
Aircraft : Boeing 747-209B

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Location : off Penghu, Taiwan
People on board : 225
Fatalities : 225

25th May, 2002

China airlines Boeing 747 with 225 people onboard crashes in Taiwan

The aircraft was on a passenger flight from Taiwan's Chiang Kai Shek Airport to Hong Kong. The flight duration was expected to be 1h20. About 20 minutes after takeoff, while cruising at…

Date : 31st October, 2015
Airline : Metrojet
Aircraft : Airbus A321-231

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Location : Al-Arish, North Sinai, Egypt
People on board : 224
Fatalities : 224

31st October, 2015

Metrojet Airbus A321 with 224 people onboard crashes in North Sinai, Egypt

The Airbus A321-200 operated by Metrojet took off from Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, for a passenger flight to St. Petersburg, Russia. 217 passengers and 7 crewmembers were onboard. 23 minutes after…

Date : 29th October, 2018
Airline : Lion Air
Aircraft : Boeing 737-800MAX

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Location : Off Jakarta, Indonesia
People on board : 189
Fatalities : 189

29th October, 2018

Lion Air Boeing 737 with 189 people onboard crashes in Indonesia

The Boeing 737-800 MAX operated by Lion Air took off from Jakarta, Indonesia, for a passenger flight to Pangkal Pinang, Indonesia. 181 passengers and 8 crewmembers were onboard. The plane…

Date : 8th January, 2020
Airline : Ukraine International Airlines
Aircraft : Boeing 737-8KV

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Location : Tehran, Iran
People on board : 176
Fatalities : 176

8th January, 2020

Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737 with 176 people onboard shot down in Iran

The Boeing 737-800, operated by UIA Ukraine International Airlines, took off from Tehran, Iran, for a passenger flight to Kiev, Ukraine. 167 passengers and 9 crewmembers were onboard. The…

Date : 22nd August, 2006
Airline : Pulkovo Airlines
Aircraft : Tupolev TU-154

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Location : Donetsk, Ukraine
People on board : 170
Fatalities : 170

22nd August, 2006

Pulkovo Airlines Tupolev 154 with 170 people onboard crashes in Ukraine

Date : 30th January, 2000
Airline : Kenya Airways
Aircraft : Airbus A310-304

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Location : Abidjan, Ivory Coast
People on board : 179
Fatalities : 169

30th January, 2000

Kenya Airways Airbus A310 with 179 people onboard crashes in Ivory Coast

The A310 was on a passenger flight, and departed from Abidjan. The aircraft crashed into the Atlantic Ocean shortly after takeoff from Abidjan. Numerous eyewitnesses who saw the airplane…

Date : 15th July, 2009
Airline : Caspian Airlines
Aircraft : Tupolev TU-154M

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Location : Qazvin, Iran
People on board : 168
Fatalities : 168

15th July, 2009

Caspian Airlines Tupolev 154M with 168 people onboard crashes in Iran

The Caspian Airlines Tupolev 154M passenger plane was destroyed when it struck terrain near Qazvin, Iran, 16 minutes after takeoff. The airplane was en route from Tehran, Iran to Yerevan,…

Date : 28th December, 2014
Airline : AirAsia Indonesia
Aircraft : Airbus A320-216

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Location : Java Sea, Indonesia
People on board : 162
Fatalities : 162

28th December, 2014

AirAsia Indonesia Airbus A320 with 162 people onboard crashes in Indonesia

The AirAsia Indonesia Airbus A320-200 took off from Surabaya, Indonesia, for a passenger flight to Singapore, Singapore. 155 passengers and 7 crewmembers were onboard. The plane disappeared…

Date : 16th August, 2005
Airline : West Caribbean Airways
Aircraft : MD-82

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Location : Machiques, Venezuela
People on board : 160
Fatalities : 160

16th August, 2005

West Caribbean Airways MD-82 with 160 people onboard crashes in Venezuela

The aircraft was on a passenger flight from Panama City, Panama to Fort de France on the Caribbean Island of Martinique. The crew announced intentions to divert to Caracas. Then the aircraft…

Criteria for the inclusion of an airplane accident in our database

All airplane crashes that happened since January 1st 2000 and matching all the following criteria are part of this database:

• The accident involves at least one public transport airplane. A flight is considered as public transport when it carries, from point A to point B, passengers or cargo for commercial purposes. Public transport operators must hold a national air operator’s certificate and an operating licence.
• The accident involves at least one airplane having a maximum take off weight equal or more than 12,000 lb (5,7 tons). This corresponds to the definition of a large aeroplane in the sense of the civil aviation regulation. Airplanes in this category comply with more stringent regulations.
• The accident resulted in a hull loss of at least one public transport airplane. Hull loss means the airplane is damage beyond repairs.

A few events in that database don’t match with those criteria, such as relevant events of flight tests aircraft, or military transport planes.