Not all planes are built for safe skies—these 10 dangerous aircraft earned their reputation through crashes, mechanical issues, and terrifying in-flight failures.
1. Douglas DC-10
The DC-10 immediately got off on the wrong foot as McDonnell Douglas’s new flagship model in the early ‘70s. With the most deadly global and U.S. accidents up to that point in 1974 and 1979 respectively, the plane was grounded. Although public apprehension about the plane meant it never reached its full potential, it’s worth noting that design flaw fixes put it back in the air and it has maintained a respectable record since then, with many versions still flying as cargo planes.
2. Vought Cutlass
This 1950s U.S. Navy fighter was laden with design flaws including a lack of power, unreliable hydraulic systems, and exceedingly difficult visibility when landing on a carrier. After many accidents, the Navy replaced the plane with other options.
3. Tupolev Tu-104
While some Russians like to prop the plane up as the world’s first jet airliner, that claim is disputed, and the aircraft wasn’t exactly safe. Based heavily on the Tu-16 Badger bomber, Tupolev didn’t change much about the aircraft’s design, meaning it wasn’t the most suited for carrying passengers. From the ‘50s through the ‘70s, the aircraft crashed more than 32 times.
4. de Havilland Comet
The world’s actual first jet airliner entered service for England in 1952. However, a series of many crashes ultimately proved that the plane possessed significant design flaws around the wings and fuselage integrity. Britain’s desire for the plane’s success left it flying long after it should have logically been grounded.
5. Supermarine Scimitar
Although not perfect, the Scimitar was more functional than many aircraft on this list. However, the British ‘50s and ‘60s naval aircraft suffered numerous incidents for differing reasons. Hydraulic failures, engine failures, obvious pilot error, bird strikes and more meant that by the end of its service, the RAF lost a staggering 51% of its Scimitars. All in peacetime.
6. Fairchild F-105 Thunderchief
Undoubtedly one of the worst fighter jets the United States ever produced, the F-105’s problems compounded when it served in active combat during the Vietnam War. Hydraulic problems, combined with its affinity for getting shot down, meant that more than half of F-105’s never came home. Most versions were retired before the war even finished.
7. Latécoère 631
Unsurprisingly, this massive French seaplane from the 1930s wasn’t very safe. Flying mostly after World War II in the late ‘40s, four of seven that took to the skies eventually crashed. Another four were so laden with issues that they never even made it off the ground.
8. Boeing 737 MAX 8
Devastating crashes are rare in the modern aviation era. That’s why you probably know about the two tragic accidents for Boeing’s 2017 737. Thanks to a rushed design process, a glitch in the plane’s “MCAS” system caused both planes to unexpectedly nosedive. That glitch has allegedly been rectified.
9. Mitsubishi A6M “Zero”
Most planes are flown with landing in mind. Tragically, the Mitsubishi A6M “Zero” often wasn’t. As the most prolific Japanese kamikaze plane of World War II, it’s hard to say this wasn’t the most “dangerous” plane ever made. Although a capable fighter, its availability meant that it was most often repurposed in this role. Other planes, like the human-flown, rocket propelled bomb called the Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka, were more explicitly designed with “not coming back” in mind.
10. Cessna 152
Is the Cessna 152 a dangerous plane? In most ways no, but it is flown just about everywhere, and often by amateur pilots. That means it has been in more accidents than any other plane by quite some margin. As long as new pilots continue to fly it, I don’t see that changing.
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