Etihad, Cathay Pacific and Qantas are among the top five safest full-service airlines in the world, while Alaska Airlines was the highest-ranking U.S. carrier, according to the latest annual ranking from AirlineRatings.com. Joining Alaska Airlines (which ranked 15th) in the top 25 ranking of the safest full-service airlines are Delta Air Lines (23rd) and American Airlines (24th), which formed the three U.S. carriers in the listing. Among the low-cost airlines, the top five safest were found to be HK Express, Jetstar Airways, Scoot, flydubai, and easyJet. U.S. regional carriers Endeavor Air, Envoy Air, Piedmont Airlines, and PSA Airlines were excluded as well. She described these figures as “a true credit to the industry as a whole.”Notable Changes in 2026This year’s rankings saw several noteworthy shifts among both full‑service and low‑cost airlines.