
World's safest low-cost airlines: Aviation analysis site AirlineRatings.com has announced its annual list of the world's safest low-cost airlines. Aer Lingus, Ireland's national flag carrier, leads the alphabetical top 10.

Flybe: Another well-established carrier, Flybe began life as Jersey European Airways in 1979 and has undergone several rebrandings before emerging as Flybe in 2002.

Frontier: New to 2018's list, Frontier is a Colorado-based carrier that flies to 70 destinations in the US, Mexico, the Caribbean and Canada.

HK Express: Founded in 2004, HK Express transformed itself into a low-cost carrier in 2013 in an effort to reverse its troubled fortunes. AirlineRatings.com says all the budget carriers on its list have passed stringent International Air Transport Association operational safety audits, unlike many of their rivals.

JetBlue: US low-cost airline JetBlue has held onto its place in the 2018 list. However, in December 2017, Fortune reported that the carrier continues to have a problem with flight delays -- it has an on-time arrival rate of 70% compared with an industry average of 79%.

Jetstar Australia: A budget offshoot of Aussie carrier Qantas, Jetstar has hubs in most major Australian cities and is headquartered in Melbourne.

Thomas Cook: Thomas Cook Airlines is an offshoot of the venerable British travel agency.

Virgin America: Virgin America was founded in 2007 and was acquired by Alaska Air Group in 2016.

Vueling: Established in 2004, Vueling is a Spanish low-cost airline headquartered out of Barcelona El Prat Airport and is part of the International Airlines Group (IAG).

WestJet: One of the oldest airlines on this list, Canada's WestJet was launched in 1996. Based in Calgary, it offers destinations -- some via code share -- across Canada, America, the Caribbean, Ireland and the UK.


