Several recent incidents involving airplanes have left travelers in America more uneasy about taking their next trip to the sky, with the country’s deadliest air disaster since 2001 happening last month.
A new Benzinga poll reveals what percent of consumers might be looking to skip planes all together in 2025.
What Happened: Plane safety has become an increasing hot topic after several recent plane mishaps and recent layoffs at airports and federal aviation agencies.
In January, an American Airlines Group (NASDAQ:AAL) owned regional jet collided with a U.S. army helicopter. The incident led to the death of 64 people on board the plane, the deadliest air disaster on U.S. soil since 2001.
President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk were quick to blame DEI and other factors outside of the recent layoffs and staff shortages for federal aviation agencies.
The incident was followed by the crash of two regional planes colliding in Arizona, killing two people and the flipping of a Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) jet on the Toronto runway at a Canadian airport, injuring 18 people.
Benzinga recently asked readers to see if these incidents had changed their thoughts on travel by airplane.
“Has recent news about plane safety affected your willingness to fly in 2025?” Benzinga asked.
The results were:
- No change in my travel plans: 60%
- I’m avoiding air travel completely: 17%
- I’ll fly less frequently: 16%
- I’ll fly more than before: 7%
The majority of readers said they won’t change their travel plans on account of the airplane mishaps, which could be related to the long history of safety from planes or from necessity to use airplanes to shorten travel distance.
The second and third place answers show there could be some concern about airplane safety with 17% saying they’re avoiding air travel completely and 16% saying they plan to fly less frequently this year.
Read Also: Trump’s Comments On American Airlines Crash ‘Despicable,’ Says Pete Buttigieg: President Should Be ‘Leading, Not Lying’
Why It’s Important: Former Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) leader Michael Whitaker resigned from his position on Jan. 20, a move that came months after Trump-ally Elon Musk demanded he quit his position.
That same day, Trump ordered a hiring freeze of federal civilian employees. The order drew criticism from former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg who said it affected aviation safety: “One of his first acts was to fire and suspend some of the key personnel who helped keep our skies safe.”
The order, according to the White House website, does not include “military personnel of the armed forces or to positions related to immigration enforcement, national security, or public safety.”
Trump has suggested in the days following the accident that diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies “could have been” a cause of the plane crash.
Billionaire Elon Musk also seemingly supports this theory. The X owner shared multiple posts from people suggesting DEI as a reason why the aircraft collided. The Tesla CEO also shared a New York Post article about the FAA pushing for diversity in hiring.
The suggestions from Trump and Musk led to reporters asking if it was still safe to fly.
Reporters asked White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt about Trump’s remarks during a press briefing Friday.
“Given DEI hires, it’s not safe to fly commercially, is it?” Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy asked.
The poll above shows that a portion of people are scared to fly in 2025 due to plane mishaps and safety concerns.
Leavitt said it is still safe, a comment that could contradict what Trump said the day before.
Price Action: The U.S. Global Jets ETF (NYSE:JETS), which holds a basket of airline stocks, is down 2.7% year-to-date in 2025. The ETF is up 21% over the last year.
American Airlines stock is down 14.4% year-to-date in 2025 and down 6.3% over the last year.
Delta Air Lines stock is up 1.4% year-to-date in2025 and up 42.7% over the last year.
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The study was conducted by Benzinga from Feb. 19, 2025 through Feb. 21, 2025. It included the responses of a diverse population of adults 18 or older. Opting into the survey was completely voluntary, with no incentives offered to potential respondents. The study reflects results from 92 adults.
Image: Shutterstock
