How dangerous are the skies for commercial air travel?

The Heat

Captain Chelsey “Sully” Sullenberger.Captain Chelsey “Sully” Sullenberger.

It has been a deadly month for airline passengers following three major plane crashes and more than 460 people killed. With sophisticated technology, is it safer to fly now than it was a few years ago?

The fallout continues over the Malaysian Airlines jet that was shot down in Ukraine this month. The crash killed all 298 people on board. The flight recorders have been recovered from the crash site but, almost from the start, the world learned Flight MH17 was shot down by a missile.

In 2002, an attempt to down an Israeli charter flight over Africa with a shoulder-launched missile prompted Israel to install the most sophisticated anti-missile system on the market on commercial carriers. CCTV America’s Stephanie Freid has more from Tel Aviv.

Someone who has had a lot of experience flying commercial planes is Captain Chelsey “Sully” Sullenberger. He has become a household name in the United States after he successfully made an emergency landing on the Hudson River in New York in 2009. He saved the lives of all 155 people on board his U.S. Airways flight. Captain Sullenberger joined Anand Naidoo in CCTV America’s studios for more on airline safety.

Ali Bahrami, Vice President of the civil aviation division of the Aerospace Industries Association, then joined Captain Sullenberger and Anand Naidoo to discuss what aviation safety measures are currently in place to protect the passengers.