Two aeroplane crashes lead to deadliest year in skies since 2018

Passenger fatalities jump to 318 this year

Commercial aviation has suffered its deadliest year since 2018 after the Jeju Air disaster in South Korea and last week's downing of an Azerbaijan Airlines plane.

Onboard passenger plane fatalities this year jumped to 318 with the two recent crashes, data compiled by Cirium shows. That's by far the highest death toll since more than 500 people died in 2018, a year marked by the first of two Boeing Co. 737 Max crashes.

This year started and ended with tragedies in Japan and South Korea during attempted landings, among the most dangerous phases of flight. Fatal aviation accidents remain very rare, and one major incident can suddenly turn a statistically safe year into one of the worst.