Air New Zealand is the best airline in the world according to AirlineRatings.com, an Australian aviation safety and product-rating agency.
The Kiwi airline was lauded for its in-flight facilities, safety record, staff and environmental leadership. In the past 10 years, it has reduced its carbon emissions by more than 20 per cent, which is ahead of the industry average. The win is the sixth time Air New Zealand has been ranked the world's number one airline by AirlineRatings.com.
Air New Zealand also took honours in AirlineRatings.com's annual Excellence Awards. These awards consider major safety and government audits, fleet age, passenger reviews, product offerings and staff relations. Air New Zealand won Best Premium Economy award.
Coming in second place in the website's list of the world's top 20 airlines is Singapore Airlines. All carriers included in the list must achieve a seven-star safety rating. Singapore Airlines slipped down one place this year, off the top spot from 2019. The airline also received commendation for its First Class offerings.
Japan's All Nippon, Australia's Qantas and Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific round out the top five airlines in the world.
Emirates named best long-haul Middle Eastern airline
Emirates is ranked in sixth place in the AirlineRating.com list. The Dubai airline recently ordered 30 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners and 50 A350-900 wide-body aircraft to upgrade its fleet. It is also set to introduce Premium Economy for the first time in 2020. Emirates also took awards for Best In-flight Entertainment (IFE) and Best Long-Haul Middle East airline.
“Emirates was one of the pioneers of IFE, and one of the first to install seat-back videos in economy. Today, its IFE platform Ice is in a class of its own,” said Geoffrey Thomas, editor-in-chief at AirlineRating.com.
Etihad makes the cut
Virgin Atlantic, Eva Air, Qatar Airways and Virgin Australia made up the world’s top 10 airlines. Lufthansa, Finnair, Japan Airlines, KLM, Korean Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, British Airways, Alaska Airlines and Delta Air Lines made up the remainder of the top 20 with Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the UAE, edging into 20th position.
Low-cost honours for Air Arabia
Elsewhere, Air Arabia was named Best Low-Cost Airline for the Middle East and Africa. The Sharjah carrier has recently partnered with Etihad to create Abu Dhabi's first low-cost airline. Called Air Arabia Abu Dhabi, the airline will operate out of Abu Dhabi International Airport and is expected to begin flying next year.
