[sudosysgen]

Airliners can glide. Rockets can't. That's your big difference right there.

Wings are also way simpler than rockets.

You also have way more time to try to fix or workaround issues.

Reliability wise, airplanes will always be much better than rockets, especially if you include a propulsive landing.

[m4rtink]

Sure, gliding helped to avoid many catastrophes (Gimli Glider, Hudson miracle, etc.) but the thing is - does it make sense for a rocketship ? On a point to point flight you are going to land (or impact) somewhere and you need a couple working engines to land safely, the same as you need working control systems to glide to an airport.

Still, Starship does not really need an airport for emergency landing - anything reasonably level will very quickly become a landing pad once the raptors get going for landing.

Also as for wings - those seem very complex to me on a modern airliner - flaps, spoilers, ailerons, wingless, integral fuel tanks, etc. In comparison to that starship is a lightweight water tower with a couple metal barn doors attached - much simpler structure with far less moving parts.

[sudosysgen]

Wings are certainly not complex. They are passive, and ailerions/flapse/spoilers are hydraulically operated.