The number of deaths in major air crashes around the globe fell by more than half from the previous year in 2019, according to a report by an aviation consulting firm.

The To70 consultancy said that 257 people died in eight fatal accidents in 2019. That compares to 534 deaths in 13 fatal accidents in 2018.

The 2019 death toll rose in late December after a Bek Air Fokker 100 crashed Dec. 27 on takeoff in Kazakhstan, killing 12 people. The worst crash of 2019 involved an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 Max plane that crashed March 10, killing 157 people.

The report said fatal accidents in 2018 and 2019 that led to the grounding of Boeing’s 737 Max raised questions about how aviation authorities approve aviation designs derived from older ones, and about how much pilot training is needed on new systems. (AP)