PERTH, Australia, Jan. 5, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- AirlineRatings.com, the world's only safety and product rating website, has announced its top 20 safest airlines for 2017 from the 425 it monitors.

Top of the list for the fourth-year running is Australia's Qantas, which has a fatality free record in the jet era. ( http://www.airlineratings.com/news.php?s&id=997 )

Making up the top 20 in alphabetical order are; Air New Zealand, Alaska Airlines, All Nippon Airways, British Airways, Cathay Pacific Airways, Delta Air Lines, Etihad Airways, EVA Air, Finnair, Hawaiian Airlines, Japan Airlines, KLM, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airline System, Singapore Airlines, Swiss, United Airlines, Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Australia.

AirlineRatings.com does not numerically rank its top 20 safest airlines but selects one overall standout airline.

Responding to public interest, the AirlineRatings.com editors also identified their top ten safest low-cost airlines.

These are (in alphabetical order): Aer Lingus, Flybe, HK Express, Jetblue, Jetstar Australia, Jetstar Asia, Thomas Cook, Virgin America, Vueling and Westjet.

In making its selections, AirlineRatings.com takes into account a range of factors that include; audits from aviation's governing bodies and lead associations; government audits; airline's crash and serious incident record; profitability and fleet age.

AirlineRating.com's editorial team, one of the world's most awarded and experienced, also examined each airline's fleet history and its track record of initiating new safety technology to arrive at its top 20 safest airlines.

According to AirlineRatings.com editor Geoffrey Thomas, "our top 20 safest airlines are always at the forefront of safety innovation, operational excellence and the launching of more advanced aircraft like the A350, 787 and 777X."

"While these airlines are always leaders in safety there was no question that Qantas still remains the leader in safety enhancements and operational excellence," Mr Thomas said.

"Over its 96-year history Qantas has amassed an amazing record of firsts in safety and operations and is accepted as the world's most experienced airline."

"Qantas has been the lead airline in virtually every major operational safety advancement over the past 60 years."

About AirlineRatings.com

AirlineRatings was launched in June 2013 and rates the safety and in-flight product of 425 airlines using its unique seven-star rating system. It has been used by millions of passengers from 232 countries and has become the industry standard for safety and product rating. Its safety rating system was created with the help of the International Civil Aviation Organization. The editorial team is one of the world's most experienced with almost 42 international and national awards. They have also authored or co-authored more than 28 industry books.

SOURCE Airline Ratings Pty Ltd