Turbulence: The Leading Cause of Aircraft Accidents Worldwide in 2023

An International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) report reveals several causes of global commercial aircraft accidents in 2023.

The most frequent cause was turbulence encounters (TURB), accounting for 24 incidents. This was followed by abnormal runway contact (ARC), with 8 accidents. The ICAO states that TURB and ARC represent approximately half of all accidents in 2023.

Ground collisions (GCOL) accounted for 7 incidents, the same number attributed to system/component failure or malfunction (non-powerplant) (SCF-NP).

The remaining causes involved fewer than five incidents each. However, ICAO notes that each cause has a varying fatality rate.

"There was one fatal accident related to loss of control inflight (LOC-I) resulting in all occupants perishing in 2023," the ICAO report stated on Saturday, February 1st, 2024.

The ICAO further reported two aircraft destroyed—one due to loss of control on the ground (LOC-G) and another due to a LOC-I accident—eight aircraft damaged in ARC-related accidents, and other accidents resulting in substantial damage.

The following details the number of accidents per cause reported by ICAO for 2023:

* TURB: Turbulence encounter (24 incidents)
* ARC: Abnormal runway contact (8)
* GCOL: Ground collision (7)
* SCF-NP: System/component failure or malfunction (non-powerplant) (7)
* RAMP: Ground handling (5)
* ADRM: Aerodrome (2)
* LOC-G: Loss of control on ground (2)
* LOC-I: Loss of control inflight (2)
* WSTRW: Wind shear or thunderstorm (2)
* BIRD: Bird strike (1)
* EVAC: Evacuation (1)
* F-NI: Fire/smoke (non-impact) (1)
* MAC: Mid-air collision (1)
* SEC: Security related (1)
* Other (2)