Vueling

Is Vueling safe?

Yes. Vueling has flown millions of flights from Barcelona since the mid-2000s without a fatal accident or a lost aircraft. It is overseen by Spain's aviation authority, AESA, under the EU's EASA rules, and it is IOSA-registeredIOSAThe IATA Operational Safety Audit, an international audit of an airline's safety management and operations. Every IATA member must pass it.More in the glossary. We score it 88, level with KLM and just behind Ryanair. Two serious incidents in 2026, both under investigation, are the main reason it does not score higher.

Has anything gone wrong at Vueling?

Nothing deadly, but Spain's investigation board, the CIAIAC, has opened several cases on Vueling aircraft over the past decade, which is normal for an airline of its size.

The two current ones are from 2026:

• 22 January, Fuerteventura. As an Airbus A321 took off for Barcelona, the outer skin of a thrust reverser panel on the right engine came off and fell onto the runway. The crew noticed nothing, flew on and even used the reversers on landing. Maintenance found the damage after the flight. Losing parts without anyone noticing is why the CIAIAC classed it as a serious incident.
• 11 July, Barcelona. A Vueling A320 arriving from Marrakesh and a Buzz Boeing 737 flying for Ryanair from Kraków were both turning onto the approach to runway 06L when the 737 flew through the final approach course. Air traffic control turned the Vueling away, both crews followed collision-avoidance alerts, and the closest point was 200 feet vertically and 0.6 nautical miles apart. The CIAIAC is investigating; on the facts so far, Vueling's crew did what they were told.

Older events include a March 2016 landing at Bilbao in which an A320 ran off the left side of the runway in the landing roll, struck a runway light and a sign, and rolled back onto the runway. Nobody was hurt. Bilbao is known for strong, gusty winds off the hills around it.

Bilbao was also the scene of the other notable case. On 25 October 2018, two fan cowls came off the left engine of a Vueling A320 on take-off for Barcelona; the crew did not notice and flew on. Debris caused minor damage to the left main gear and fuselage, and no one was hurt. The CIAIAC found that the cowls had been left unlatched after maintenance and missed in the walk-around check.

At Palma on 11 October 2024, an A320 from Jerez touched down while a business jet that had landed ahead of it was still on the runway. The CIAIAC rated it an incident and blamed both the controllers and the Vueling crew for accepting the loss of separationLoss of separationWhen two aircraft come closer to each other than the minimum distance air traffic rules require. A reported near miss in the UK is called an airprox.More in the glossary; the crew had been slow to reduce speed. Taken together with the 2026 reverser panel, it is the pattern we would watch: parts coming off aircraft, rather than anything in the cockpit.

How old is the Vueling fleet?

Middle-aged. In August 2025 Vueling had 144 Airbus A320-family aircraft, according to Aviacionline: 92 A320s averaging 13 years, 18 A321s at about 9 years, six A319s at 18 years, and 28 A320neos and A321neos. Thirteen of the 24 A320neos were parked at the time, which kept older aircraft flying longer.

All of these are fly-by-wireFly-by-wireA flight control system in which the pilot's inputs go to computers, which then move the control surfaces. Many such systems also stop unsafe manoeuvres.More in the glossary jets with a strong safety record (see our A320 family page). The change ahead is the Boeing 737 MAX: IAG has assigned 50 to Vueling, 25 high-density MAX 8-200s and 25 MAX 10s, with deliveries starting in late 2026 to replace older A320s into the early 2030s. Vueling will be flying two aircraft families for the first time, which means new training and maintenance work that the regulator will watch.

Is Vueling as safe as Ryanair or easyJet?

On the record, yes. None of the three big European low-cost airlines has had a fatal accident, and all three fly under EASA rules. Ryanair has a younger fleet and a longer clean record; Vueling has the IOSAIOSAThe IATA Operational Safety Audit, an international audit of an airline's safety management and operations. Every IATA member must pass it.More in the glossary audit that Ryanair does without. The differences between them are small next to the gap between European low-cost airlines and many airlines elsewhere.

Practical advice for Vueling passengers

• Expect delays in summer, not danger. Vueling's punctuality suffers from French air traffic control strikes and crowded Spanish airspace. Build in time for connections.
• On Iberia codeshares, check the operator. Some IB-numbered flights within Spain and Europe are flown by Vueling under its own certificate.
• Keep your belt fastened when seated. On short flights the cabin service and the seat-belt sign often overlap, and turbulence injuries mostly happen to people who are up or unbuckled.

How we scored it

The accident record (94) is near the top of our scale, and oversight (90) is strong. The fleet (78) loses points for the older A320s and parked neos, and the 2026 thrust reverser event keeps incidents at 80. Compare it with its sister airline Iberia, which has a longer and less clean history.