Pax
I hate to have to break the news, but when constraints compete, the factor that drives the decision is the #1 priority.
The details of the trade off are irrelevant.
You are making a fatuous argument here, as no one is saying that safety is not a very high priority or that the airlines take unreasonable risks, I re-iterate that they make very sound decisions.
But if safety was the number one priority, it would be more important than profit and we might have sprinkler systems, smokehoods etc.
The effect of this would be to make air travel much more expensive and unattractive/unaffordable to many.
For your info, as a management consultant, I worked in the business side of a major airline for nearly 12 months and got involved in making recommendations that balanced cost, time and safety.