African Aviation Trails

Introduction. In January 2026, the Aviation Safety Network recorded 296 aviation occurrences globally, resulting in a total of 78 fatalities. The deadliest accidents involved both commercial and military operations. Significant single-incident fatalities included 15 deaths in Colombia when a Beechcraft 1900D operated by SEARCA–SATENA crashed east of Ocaña Airport on 28 January, 10 fatalities in Indonesia following an ATR 42-512 crash near Mount Bulusaraung, South Sulawesi on 17 January, and 6 fatalities in the United States during a Piper PA-31-325 Navajo C/R crash at Juan José Rondón Airport in Paipa, Boyacá, Colombia, on 10 January, as well as another 6 deaths in India when a Learjet 45XR operated by VSR Ventures Pvt Ltd crashed at Baramati Airport, Maharashtra on 28 January. Additional smaller-scale fatal incidents included multiple private aircraft accidents across the U.S., Brazil, Italy, New Zealand, Portugal, and Vietnam, with single- or double-fatality events contributing to the total. These statistics highlight that while the majority of occurrences in January 2026 were non-fatal or minor incidents, a few high-casualty events, particularly involving commercial, cargo, and military aircraft, accounted for the bulk of the fatalities recorded.

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