Two high-profile passenger jet crashes make June the worst for insured aviation losses since 9/11.
The Air France crash off the coast of Brazil on the first day of the month resulted in 228 fatalities; the Yemeni Air flight originating in Paris crashed off the Comoros archipelago in the Indian Ocean June 30th killing 153.
2009 has already witnessed 5 commercial airline crashes involving loss of life, together with other near-misses such as the dramatic January splashdown of the US Airways Airbus A320 in the Hudson River in New York.
If the rest of the year sees activity return to historical norms, 2009 is still projected by insurers to be approximately 60% higher in loss-costs than the long-term annual average.
This all means that airlines are likely to see insurance costs rise next year, as underwriters project how this year’s tragedies portend future trends in aviation claims losses. And increased operating costs of any type almost inevitably result in adding to the price of a passenger ticket.