The Worst Plane Crashes of 2015

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In this photo taken on Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2015, The Russian airline Kogalymavia’s Airbus A321 with a tail number of EI-ETJ on an airstrip of Moscow’s Domodedovo international airport, outside Moscow, Russia. (AP Photo/Marina Lystseva)

A Russian passenger plane crashed in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt, on Saturday morning killing all 224 people on board.

The MetroJet Airbus A321 was en route from the Egyptian resort city of Sharm El Sheikh to St Petersburg, Russia, when it is believed to have encountered technical difficulties and disappeared from radar—just 23 minutes into the journey.

Militants alleging to be linked to ISIS claimed in a statement that they were responsible, but the Russian Transport Minister has called those reports “unreliable.”

Both Lufthansa and Air France are re-routing planes flying over the area.

This is the worst accident in Russian aviation history and the deadliest crash so far in 2015—a year that has seen a total of 102 plane crashes internationally.

But while only a small proportion of those accidents involve commercial airline flights, and even fewer result in fatalities, there have still been 825 deaths from plane crashes this year alone.

Yahoo Travel readers often ask our editors if we believe that plane crashes are on the rise. There is no evidence to support that concept and commercial aviation remains an incredibly safe way to travel. Of course it seems that there are more crashes since we have so much more access to information about crashes around the world.

Hundreds of thousands of planes take flight each year.

Aside from Saturday’s tragic crash in Egypt, these are the worst crashes so far in 2015.

Abu adh Dhuhur Air Base

Date: January 18

A Syrian Air Force transport plane crashed during its approach into Abu adh Dhuhur Air Force Base on January 18 killing all 24 passengers and 6 crew members on board. It was initially reported by the local media that the plane crashed due to fog, however the Nusra Front, a Syrian fraction of Al Qaeda, later claimed to have shot down the aircraft.

TransAsia Airways Flight GE235

Date: February 4

On the morning of February 4, a TransAsia flight from Taipei to Kinsmen Island suffered an engine failure shortly after take off and began losing altitude. After running into a viaduct, the plane crashed into the Keelung River where it broke up and came to rest upside down. Of the 58 people on board, 43 were killed including 4 of the 5 crew members. Only 15 people survived.

Germanwings Flight 4U9525

Date: March 24

The Germanwings flight 4U9525 took off from Barcelona, Spain, en route to Dusseldorf, Germany as scheduled. But just 30 minutes after take-off, the plane began to lose altitude, eventually crashing into mountainside in a remote area of the Alps. All 150 people on board died. It was later discovered that the pilot had been locked out of the cockpit and that the co-pilot had deliberately set the plane on a crash course with the mountainside.

Indonesian Air Force Hercules

Date: June 30

Indonesian Air Force squadron 32’s Lockheed Hercules transport plane crashed on June 30th shortly after take off from Medan-Soewondo Air Force Base. The aircraft hit several buildings, including a spa business, after one of it’s engines failed during ascent killing 122 people on board and 17 people on the ground. There have been conflicting reports but it is believed that the plane was carrying 38 military personnel and 84 civilians.

Trigana Air Service Flight IL 257

Date: August 16

The Trigana Air Service ATR-42 aircraft took off from Jayapura in Indonesia on August 16 for its short 45 minute flight to Oksibil—a remote town near the border with Papua New Guinea. Air traffic control lost contact with the aircraft 30 minutes into the flight. The plane’s wreckage was found the following day on a high altitude ridge of the Tango Mountain, just 17km from the airport where it was due to land. All 54 on board were killed. The cause of the crash is still unknown.

United States Air Force Hercules

Date: October 2

In the second major crash involving a Lockheed Hercules plane this year, a USAF operated flight crashed shortly after take off from Jalalabad Airport in Afghanistan on October 2. Six U.S servicemen and five civilians on board were killed along with two people on the ground. While the crash is still under investigation, enemy fire is not believed to have been a factor.