A 1% fatality rate definitely qualifies as huge. The statistical value of life in the US, which is inferred from what people are willing to pay to avoid risk,

A 1% fatality rate definitely qualifies as huge. The statistical value of life in the US, which is inferred from what people are willing to pay to avoid risk, is ~$10M. So a 1% risk is worth about $100k, i.e., this is something like what the median person would pay to avoid that risk. Non-expert climbers who pay for help to climb Everest probably have above average wealth and hence would probably pay even more to avoid this risk. It's sizeable. At least as risky as spaceflight.