Aviation

Best, worst airlines, Airports of 2019

 

The seventh annual study by AirHelp reveals passenger pinch points in
an expanding travel market.
These are the Best and Worst Airports
Had a bad experience at Newark Liberty Airport last year? You’re not
alone, according to recent rankings.
The New Jersey hub ranked as the worst U.S. airport in the 2019 annual
ratings from AirHelp, an organisation that specialises in air
travellers’ rights and seeks compensation in cases of delays or
cancellations. See last year’s rankings here.
U.S. airports in general didn’t fare particularly well, with the
highest-rated Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport taking
34th place of 132 around the world. Newark held the lowest U.S. spot,
at 116. A major reason is weather-related delays, says Henrik Zillmer,
AirHelp’s chief executive officer; they are a huge problem for
American airports, compared with European ones.
“If you have the slightest amount of snow at JFK, the airport will
close,” Zillmer, says, referring to the New York hub that ranked 86th.
Beyond that, quality of service in the U.S. has room for improvement,
with long security lines a frequent problem.
The airports are rated based on three factors: on-time performance,
service quality, and food and shopping options. The first accounts for
60% of the score and the other criteria each make up 20%. AirHelp’s
data comes from multiple commercial vendors, along with its own
database, plus 40,000 passenger surveys collected in 40 countries
during 2018.
Topping AirHelp’s rankings are Doha’s Hamad International Airport,
Tokyo Haneda International Airport, and Athens International Airport,
which have taken the top spots since the ratings began in 2015. It’s
worth considering the overall picture of each airport in looking at
the list. For instance, high ratings for Athens puzzled the AirHelp
team at first, says Zillmer, until you consider that its sunny weather
results in fewer delays, and vacationers are more likely to leave
positive reviews.
“It’s a good efficient airport, there are a lot of things I like about
it,” says Scott Mayerowitz, executive editorial director at travel
website the Points Guy, about Athens International, but noted there’s
nothing inspiring about it. The fact that at just works seems to be
enough, even without bells and whistles such as a butterfly gardens or
‘rain vortex.’ “At the end of the day, you’re not going to choose a
destination because it’s got a great airport—you’re choosing a
destination because you’re either going to that place for vacation or
you have business meetings there.”
But when you do have choice, as in the New York City metro area, it
can factor in.
“Newark is traditionally one of the worst performing airports in the
country and one that travelers avoid because of the delays there,”
says Mayerowitz. He also expressed surprise at Billy Bishop Toronto
City airport being ranked so low, as opposed to Pearson, noting it’s a
favorite of business travelers who love its convenience to the city
center. “I thought it should have been higher.”
Congestion continues to be the biggest problem facing airports: The
flight industry is experiencing a rapid increase in global tourism.
The Worldwide Tourism Organization estimates that worldwide
international tourist arrivals increased 6%, to 1.4 billion in 2018.
“Some airports are expanding quickly, but it’s still a big issue for
most, especially during peak hours,” says Zillmer.
Hamad International Airport (DOH) in Doha, Qatar, has again topped
AirHelp’s worldwide airport rankings.
The 10 Best Airports of 2019
1.Hamad International Airport, Qatar (DOH)
2.Tokyo International Airport, Japan (HND)
3.Athens International Airport, Greece (ATH)
4. Afonso Pena International Airport, Brazil (CWB)
5. Gdansk Lech Walesa Airport, Poland (GDN)
6. Sheremetyevo International Airport, Russia (SVO)
7. Changi Airport Singapore, Singapore (SIN)
8. Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, India (HYD)
9. Tenerife North Airport, Spain (TFN)
10.Viracopos/Campinas International Airport, Brazil (VCP)
The 10 Worst Airports of 2019
123. London Gatwick Airport, United Kingdom (LGW)
124. Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, Canada (YTZ)
125. Porto Airport, Portugal (OPO)
126. Paris Orly Airport, France (ORY)
127. Manchester Airport, United Kingdom (MAN)
128. Malta International Airport, Malta (MLA)
129. Henri Coanda International Airport, Romania (OTP)
130. Eindhoven Airport, Netherlands (EIN)
131. Kuwait International Airport, Kuwait (KWI)
132. Lisbon Portela Airport, Portugal (LIS)
American Airlines Group Inc. planes stand at Dallas-Fort Worth
International Airport (DFW). The airline jumped to second place, from
23rd, in this year’s rankings.
Among the 72 airlines for which the company has statistically
significant data, AirHelp rated them by on-time performance, service
quality, and claim processing, with each category weighed equally.
For the second year in a row, Qatar Airways ranked as the top airline,
followed by American Airlines, Aeromexico, SAS Scandinavian Airlines,
and Qantas in the top five. At the bottom of the list were Ryanair,
Korean Air, Kuwait Airways, and the U.K.’s EasyJet and Thomas Cook
Airlines.
Better weather conditions led to fewer flight disruptions in 2018
overall, Zillmer says, with on-time performance improving across the
board. This may have contributed to American Airlines securing the
second-place spot—a big jump, considering that the airline ranked 23rd
last year.
United Airlines Inc. and Delta Air Lines Inc. were also significantly
higher in 2018 than in 2017, respectively ranking 16th and 17th,
compared to 37th and 47th. While Aeromexico went from 26th to 3rd
place, SAS Scandinavian Airlines jumped to 4th from from 36th, and Air
France climbed up 15 spots to 34th.
One area Zillmer in which says many airlines need to improve is
claim-processing operations, which tidily wraps into the mission of
AirHelp. Instead of canceling a flight as soon as it’s clear that a
plane won’t be able to fly, many force passengers to wait in the
airport during long flight delays. “They’re not economically
incentivized to put you on a different airline to get you to your
destination,” he says, hoping that rankings like this can shed light
on how airlines are falling short and motivate them to step up
service.
The 10 Best Airlines of 2019
1. Qatar Airways (84% on-time prformance)
2. American Airlines (75%)
3. Aeromexico (78%)
4. SAS Scandinavian Airlines (73%)
5. Qantas (79%)
6. LATAM Airlines (77%)
7. WestJet (74%
8. Luxair (78%)
9. Austrian Airlines (71%)
10. Emirates (75%)
The 10 Worst Airlines of 2019
63. Adria Airways (67%)
64. Aerolineas Argentinas (80%)
65. Transavia (62%)
66. Laudamotion (51%)
67. Norwegian (70%)
68. Ryanair (65%)
69. Korean Air (69%)
70. Kuwait Airways (42%)
71. EasyJet (67%)
72. Thomas Cook Airlines (57%)

SOURCE: New York Times

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