Passengers have voted South Korea’s Asiana Airlines airline of the year in an annual survey by British-based consultancy Skytrax, edging out Singapore Airlines and Qatar Airways which ranked second and third.
More than 17.9 million air travellers from over 100 countries took part in the 10-month survey between July 2009 and April 2010 to choose their favourite airline.
“The award slogan of ‘The Passenger’s Choice’ underlines the fact that Asiana Airlines are succeeding in satisfying the hardest critics — their users,” said Skytrax chairman Edward Plaisted.
Qatar Airways was rated third while Cathay Pacific came fourth.
The final top 10 ranking in the awards were:
1.Asiana Airlines
2.Singapore Airlines
3.Qatar Airways
4.Cathay Pacific
5.Air New Zealand
6.Etihad Airways
7.Qantas
8.Emirates
9.Thai Airways
10.Malaysia Airlines
(Reuters)
By: steve rowell - 22nd May 2010 at 04:29
I think it’s just part of the Asian culture to be obsequious or subservient..it just comes naturally
By: Ship 741 - 22nd May 2010 at 02:25
As an acquaintance of mine who flies 747s in Asia told me, its good to be a customer in Asia, not so good to be an employee. Note that several of the top are Asian, and employ only young, good looking women as trolley dollys. Several others are Middle Eastern, hardly a region that could be called a champion of workers or womens rights. The last time I was in a hotel in Tokyo, an Asiana crew came out while I was in the lobby and there must have been at least 25 of the most perfectly groomed and attired young women…..truly an impressive sight…..:)
IMHO the reason for the lack of American carriers is obvious…….60 and 70 year old flight attendants on the long haul flying.
As for the lack of European carriers….well the concept of service to others isn’t really ingrained in the Euro-socialist mentality, n’est pa? Continual strikes, employees more concerned about their benefits than the good of the company, etc, etc, etc.
By: T5 - 22nd May 2010 at 01:15
These results are not surprising in the sense that there is not a single American carrier mentioned, but surprising because of the real lack of European carriers, too. I highly rate British Airways (when they are not on strike and ruining my Christmas travel plans) and I also very much enjoyed both KLM and Swiss. The ‘Airline of the Year’ league table is dominated by Middle Eastern, Asian and Oceanic airlines.
It is sad to see Thai slipping down the table. I seem to recall that they were in fourth position only a couple of years ago and I felt that such a high ranking was very much deserved as their economy product has always been fantastic on the many flights I have made with them. I suppose that until they get to work on bringing their 747s into the 21st century, they will continue to fall. Airlines that do not offer personal entertainment on long-haul flights are fast becoming a thing of the past, and this is where Thai unfortunately lets itself down.
I have not yet flown with Asiana on the long haul but I always enjoyed their domestic services within Korea, which I have used a number of times. I was amazed by the friendliness of the crew and their efficient service on flights of just 30-40 minutes. If the airline’s domestic product is anything to go by, then I am sure that long haul is quite impressive.
It puzzles me as to how this survey works though, so it would be appreciated if somebody could shed some light. These are all huge carriers, each flying millions of passengers a each year to destinations across the globe. How can smaller airlines, carrying fewer passengers, be recognised for their efforts and stand a chance in this competition? For example, I found Martinair’s service to be good enough back at the beginning of the year. Operating a fleet of just four 767s, it is obvious that they are not carrying anywhere near the same number of passengers as Qantas, Emirates, Cathay Pacific etc, so how does such a small airline have any chance in this survey?
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May 21, 2010 at 11:48 pm