Independentie
| 13.8°C Dublin
Menu Sections
Menu Sections
Premium subscribers enjoy unlimited access to all articles. But there’s more: discover your full benefits now.
Close
A Qatar Airways Airbus A350-900. Photo: Deposit
/
Lucy Thackray
Qatar Airways has been voted the world’s best airline for the seventh year in a row, in a list compiled from millions of consumer surveys taken all over the world.
Airline ratings website Skytrax announced the results of its World Airline Awards in a ceremony in London, naming Qatar as the overall winner across all categories, as well as individual winners for best cabin crew, business class and low-cost airlines.
Singapore Airlines came in second in the list, with Emirates following in third place.
Ryanair was named best low-cost airline in Europe, and the fourth best low-cost airline in the world after AirAsia, Scoot and Southwest.
It ranked 40th on the overall list of the world’s top 100 airlines, up from 57th last year.
Aer Lingus dropped eight places from 46th to 54th in the overall 2022 rankings.
Skytrax bases its annual ranking on more than 13 million customer surveys from more than 100 countries, with this year’s polls taken between September 2021 and August 2022.
Considering where to go as the world opens up? Indulge your inner traveller with our free newsletter every Wednesday.
This field is required
It was the first in-person awards for the brand since 2019, with both 2020 and 2021’s ceremonies held virtually online.
Qatar Airways was lauded for its “high standards” and dedication of its staff to satisfy customers, with Skytrax CEO Edward Plaisted saying the seventh consecutive win was a “unique and remarkable achievement”.
“Qatar Airways was the largest airline to have flown consistently throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, with their network never falling below 30 destinations, and that determination has clearly been well recognised by customers with this award,” he added.
Both Qatar Airways and Singapore Airlines scooped nine awards at the event, with Singapore staff being named best cabin crew, Qatar awarded best business class and both winning for best airline in their region.
As well as coming third overall, Emirates was named world’s best for economy class, and Singapore Airlines sub-brand Scoot was name-checked as the best low-cost, long-haul airline.
British Airways stuck at number 11, the same position it took last year, with Virgin Atlantic coming in 19th, rising five places in the list from last year.
The British flag carrier took home the awards for best cabin crew in Europe, while Virgin was awarded for best business class lounge as well as world’s best premium economy offering.
Qatar’s group chief executive, Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: “To be named as the World’s Best Airline was always a goal when Qatar Airways was created, but to win it for the seventh time and pick up three additional awards is a testament to all the hard work of our incredible employees.
“Their continued dedication and drive is to ensure our passengers have the best experience possible when they fly with Qatar Airways. To win these awards in the same year that we celebrate our 25th anniversary is even more rewarding and I want to offer a sincere thanks to all our passengers who voted for us.”
See more at worldairlineawards.com.
– Additional reporting by Pól Ó Conghaile
Independentie
A Mediahuis Website © Independent.ie