Worldwide there are more than 50,000 scheduled airline flights every day, more than 18,250,000 flights a year. In 2013 and 2012 there were 13 accidents each year. so world wide that would be less than 1 in 1,403,846.
But those 13 accidents did not all involve passenger flights, some were cargo flights, and not all if then resulted in passenger infuries or deaths. You shoule also note that none of them involved a US carrier, and most involved Asian or African airlines - if you are flying on a US or European airline, the odds are stacked even further in your favor.

Source(s):

It depends very much on the load, normally, for something like a long range version of the A340, B777 or B787, 16 to 18 hours is about tops.

The longest ever non-stop flight by a standard airliner was 20 hours, nine minutes, 5 seconds, by a QANTAS B747-400 (VH-OJA) from London to Sydney in 1989

However this was on its delivery flight and it carried no commercial passengers.

Airbus have flown an A340 for longer, but it was a stripped out prototype with internal tanks in the cabin.

Airbus also claimed the longest time record for an QANTAS A330 on a delivery flight from London to Melbourne, but in fact they missed by about 8 minutes and flew 69 nautical miles less distance

The longest ever unrefuelled flight by any aircraft was, of course, Voyager, which flew right round the world without stopping for fuel, in 9 days, 3 minutes, 44 seconds, covering 22,938 nautical miles.

If you want a school like Embry Riddle, you want a degree in aviation -
If you plan to become pilot, it is a very bad choice for a degree -

Your "real" degree is your pilot license and qualifications -
Not a piece of paper you get at the college to put in a frame at home -

The degree only proves to an employer that you can study -
It can be a degree in underwater basket weaving...

To fly an airline jet, it is your license and ratings which allow you to -
Not the college degree -
So get a degree which would give you an alternative career -
In case you have a medical condition, or you airline gets in bankruptcy -

Example of degree would be computer technology, or meteorology -

By the way, if you do flight training in aviation college, you pay much higher prices -
I understand that ERAU degree + training can cost you $230,000 tuition -

How will you repay education loans with your $20,000/yr regional pilot salary...?

If you do a degree at a community and state college near home -
And flight training near home as well... you can get both for $120,000 -
I just saved you over $100,000 telling you this secret -

Send me my 10% commission...
I am now an aviation consultant...!

Unlike Ivy League colleges for law, or medicine aviation colleges do not help -
A ERAU college degree does not get you the job with major airlines -
All licenses are the same -
Your pilot qualifications experience and ratings does -

In the airlines, we have Embry Riddicule jokes too -

Well, let's see.

With a car, you can move forward, back, turn left and turn right.

With an aircraft, you can move forward, backward on the ground using reverse thrust, climb, descent, yaw to the right, yaw to the left, bank to right, bank to the left.
Already, the aircraft has quite a bit more degrees of freedom than a car, should be a bit more demanding.

With a car, you drive on road, with indications in brightly colored indicator panels.
In aircraft, you can be in the air, out of view of the ground if there are clouds below, you have to figure out which direction you are going, as wind will make you drift, and missing the airport by a few miles is not really an option since you actually have to land at airports. You can be out over the ocean, thousand of miles from the nearest coast, there is no road side assistance, no service station on the way, and you have to be in contact with a air traffic center that tells you about other aircraft in the area, and about shifting weather conditions, and so on, so you have to be able to communicate *effectively* using a radio (and no, texting "Lol" on a cell phone is not comparable).

You also have to master the proper system and the limitations, like the speed where to extend and retract the flaps, the landing gear; control your speed during descent so that the plane is not going to bounce when it hits the ground, left alone crush the landing gear; and touch down at a place on the runway and at a speed that will allow the plane to come to a stop before the end of the airstrip is reached...

Why don't you go to your local small airport where there is a flight school, and purchase yourself an introduction flight, and appreciate for yourself, on a small plane, with a well trained instructor, how much more complex flying a plane is compared to driving a car?

According to the Pilot Records Improvement Act of 1996, pertinent information about a pilots previous training and employment MAY BE ACCESSED WITHOUT THE PILOTS PERMISSION. In other words, your signature and date are not required. The law was passed to prevent pilots from "covering their tracks", so to speak.

Regarding the obligation of potential employers to query previous employers, the PRIA Act says this...

.................................

"Employment records by previous employers MUST be reviewed by the airline" (my emphasis). This includes both Part 135 and Part 121 air carriers. These include records from the past five years of application that contain:

Records of training, qualifications, proficiency, and professional competence, specifically including
comments and evaluations of check airmen; Records of any disciplinary action taken by the former employer that was not subsequently overturned; Records of any termination, resignation, physical or professional disqualification, or other release with respect to employment; The results of drug testing; and records in the airline's alcohol misuse program.

NOT authorized for release are records relating to flight time, duty time and rest time.

................................

Now, when you apply to a potential employer, you may request that copies of all information they collect from your previous employers / schools be sent to you. These days most employers will give you these request forms if you wish to obtain copies.

So, can a company "kill" your career? Potentially so, but it is up to the new employer to evaluate the PRIA reports they receive and act accordingly. Often you will be given a chance to explain yourself, but not always. Besides that, a PRIA report is only required for the previous 5 years.

As for your comment about "no clear violation", perhaps you have overlooked that we are not just talking about violations of FAR's, it also includes transgressions of company policies, especially those published in a company GOM, Ops Spec or Employee Handbook.

As for "minor issues" that were "never addressed" and "no retraining offered", no company is obligated by law to give retraining or address whatever issues there are or were. Unless a trainee or employee is under a union contract (trainees rarely ever are) then a company may terminate them at will and they do not need a reason. Unbecoming behavior or personality conflict is sufficient. Even when there are unions involved, every 121 carrier I've ever heard of that has a union has a 6 month to 1 year probationary period and retains the right to terminate an employee for any reason during that period.

So, the bottom line is this...lick your wounds and carry on. If you've blown your only chance at a 121 job, then TFB. That's just the way it is unless you can place a charge of libel against whoever it was that sh*t-canned you.