Skytrax World Airline Awards 2006

[I. Wong 0]

Oh dear! MH is at 9th and BA is the first!!

 

http://www.worldairlineawards.com/

 

Personally, I have not tried BA before, but what do you think?

[Guest Fendy]

i've only flown half of the airlines in the list.... but TG 4th? is this some sort of joke?

[Keith T 2]

3 words - pure rat s#1t

 

I like BA and Qantas but I can't think for the life of me where they would excel over SQ, CX or even QR. Hardware wise, yeap they're all pretty equal, with MH and TG having to do more refits of their fleet to catch up. But I dont know how anyone can find the service on QF/BA so good that renders them the top 2 positions.

 

I've always found skytrax's methodology kinda dodgy anyway. The survey in no way seperates frequent travellers from your 'trip of a lifetime overseas' couple. So someone who travels frequently on a few different airlines is able to distinguish the good and the bad better from someone who just happens to be on a great flight by a random airline on that random day. I think QF/BA scored so well by virtue of many Americans going overseas for the first time to Europe or Australia and discovering that airlines out there that provide better service than US carriers actually exist (surprise surprise).

 

SQ has even gone out of its way to show its disdain for skytrax rankings by not even acknowledging the fact that it was 'airline of the year' when they won the title.

Edited June 7, 2006 by Keith T

[Raj 0]

Damm What happen to MH Cabin Staff..

Down to No 3..

[Keith T 2]

There is speculation over at the BA forum on Flyertalk that the airline paid Skytrax handsomely and the ranking was a result.

 

I also quote the following:

Indeed - However what always annoyed me about that website was how you were able to submit trip reports.

 

I must have 'attempted' to submit at least two or three yet to no response and nothing appearing on their website. Not even an email saying 'yes we've received it', etc, etc.

Seems they actually vet trip reports.

 

Not sure how credible that is, but I know for a fact that Skytrax runs an airline services consultancy business and regardless of whether there is a correlation between airlines who utilise skytrax's services and their rankings, it is an indication that skytrax has a clear conflict of interest.

 

Now many clueless people who use skytrax to guide their choices will trip over themselves to book seats on BA and QF, and leave SQ planes empty for me!

Edited June 8, 2006 by Keith T

[Abel E 0]

Damm What happen to MH Cabin Staff..

Down to No 3..

 

at least MH still have a place to stay

[zealich 0]

Agree with Keith. the 3 words you provide is correct!!!

where is SQ and CX??..

and what the ^%$# is TG doing there?

[Keith T 2]

Agree with Keith. the 3 words you provide is correct!!!

where is SQ and CX??..

and what the ^%$# is TG doing there?

 

CX is ranked third, while SQ is 7th. Incredible.

[I. Wong 0]

Many British like to travel with BA or QF when they go to Australia and some of them have even not heard of MH. So when you have not tried a better one, how can you compare?

[S V Choong 4]

Is it just me or does everyone else think the Skytrax logo looks like Oneworld? No wonder they gave the Oneworld airlines top ranks!!!

 

1. British Airways

2. Qantas Airways

3. Cathay Pacific

 

Politics, politics, politics

[Tony 1]

Keith has a point.

 

What you could also do is to have people sitting in front of the computer, filling out many many "trip reports" to work the "votes" up! They do say that they can detect ISPs - but what about dynamic ISPs??

[Guest Fendy]

also, TG wins best cabin staff? now i know this is a joke... come on... post the real results

[Andrew K 0]

TG cabin crew are actually pretty good. I flew 4 sectors with them recently and they are really friendly and have a certain holiday attitude, which make the passengers feel relaxed and upbeat. They're on par with MH. If one read the little details concerning the cabin staff survey, they said ....

 

"No recent Cabin Staff Awards would be complete without recognising the performance of Malaysia Airlines - a former long-term winner of this major accolade. Ranked in 3rd place, there was a considerable period of this year's Survey where Malaysia Airlines looked set to regain their title, and it was only in the last few weeks where they slipped slightly" added Edward Plaisted.

 

So, yeah. A bit of bad luck there.

 

[Keith T 2]

Is it just me or does everyone else think the Skytrax logo looks like Oneworld? No wonder they gave the Oneworld airlines top ranks!!!

 

1. British Airways

2. Qantas Airways

3. Cathay Pacific

 

Politics, politics, politics

 

Hehe yes, this has been pointed out on numerous forums in Flyertalk.

 

Does anyone here actually lets skytrax guide their choices as to what they fly though? I find the organisation pretty farcical and much prefer to read trip reports on 'real' travel forums.

 

Keith has a point.

 

What you could also do is to have people sitting in front of the computer, filling out many many "trip reports" to work the "votes" up! They do say that they can detect ISPs - but what about dynamic ISPs??

 

Oh no I don't mean they actually vet people's votes. I was referring to the reviews people write of their flights. If they publish certain reviews but reject others, it certainly shows they're bias and has implications on how reliable any survey they conduct might be.

 

Also, do you realise how they sometimes have 'airline features'? These pop up pretty randomly, much like the Skytrax certified quality awards (which don;t involve voting at all) that come up every so often, and if it's not marketing for particular carriers I don't know what it is.

Edited June 8, 2006 by Keith T

[Guest Fendy]

TG cabin crew are actually pretty good. I flew 4 sectors with them recently and they are really friendly and have a certain holiday attitude, which make the passengers feel relaxed and upbeat. They're on par with MH. If one read the little details concerning the cabin staff survey, they said ....

 

maybe, but their cabin crew were the ones who made me swear off TG in the first place. i used to go to thailand regularly for getaways and always flew TG. staff were always rude and cold, it seems like being cabin crew to them was more of a chore than anything else. boo TG. i've given them enough chances. i'm taking my business somewhere else.

[Keith T 2]

maybe, but their cabin crew were the ones who made me swear off TG in the first place. i used to go to thailand regularly for getaways and always flew TG. staff were always rude and cold, it seems like being cabin crew to them was more of a chore than anything else. boo TG. i've given them enough chances. i'm taking my business somewhere else.

 

Haven't flown them for a very long time, but given very positive reviews by others and the fact that they've got rid of the ancient MD11s with horrid seat configs on the MEL service made me more confident to give them a shot.

Edited June 8, 2006 by Keith T

[Tony 1]

Does anyone here actually lets skytrax guide their choices as to what they fly though?

 

Also, do you realise how they sometimes have 'airline features'?

Not for me - Skytrax doesn't mean much to me. I prefer reading actual trip reports by people who've actually flown the service.

 

I did come across some pop-ups the last time I went to the website (which I believe has been quite a while ago). Not sure if they're what you referred to as "airline features", but certainly had no idea what they're meant for...

[Keith T 2]

I did come across some pop-ups the last time I went to the website (which I believe has been quite a while ago). Not sure if they're what you referred to as "airline features", but certainly had no idea what they're meant for...

 

Entire webpages dedicated to promoting an airline.

 

[H C Chai 4]

Yes I was a bit surprised when I found out BA is named airline of the year by Skytrax. But then think about it, Skytrax is UK-based, most people who used or know about the Skytrax website must have flown with them. Their inflight service lags behind most asian carriers such as SQ,MH,CX, thats for sure, but still much better compare to other European airlines. As an airline as a whole, I would probably think BA is one of the best. Their online booking system is so user-friendly, from checking fares, book flights, amend booking, on-line check in, select your seat to print your own boarding pass… these are the things that makes planning a trip so manageable. The fast bag drop service at the airport is also superb. Their fare within Europe is so low that sometimes it is even cheaper to fly them compared to the LCC's… maybe its all these 'overall' experience that makes BA stands out from other airlines??

 

just my 2 cents…sorry if i upset anyone :-)

 

 

 

[Keith T 2]

Yes I was a bit surprised when I found out BA is named airline of the year by Skytrax. But then think about it, Skytrax is UK-based, most people who used or know about the Skytrax website must have flown with them. Their inflight service lags behind most asian carriers such as SQ,MH,CX, thats for sure, but still much better compare to other European airlines. As an airline as a whole, I would probably think BA is one of the best. Their online booking system is so user-friendly, from checking fares, book flights, amend booking, on-line check in, select your seat to print your own boarding pass… these are the things that makes planning a trip so manageable. The fast bag drop service at the airport is also superb. Their fare within Europe is so low that sometimes it is even cheaper to fly them compared to the LCC's… maybe its all these 'overall' experience that makes BA stands out from other airlines??

 

just my 2 cents…sorry if i upset anyone :-)

 

Yes I would say that BA is a good carrier. I never for once doubt that.

In Europe - BA definitely leads, although the introduction of BA Connect and the disappearance of all day deli bags for flights under 90 minutes took away some brownie points in my books.

Internationally, they still rank as one of the high quality performers - good inflight service, punctual (barring strike action ), decent food, PTVs. One of the very few airlines to have true flat bed seats in J, as well as one of the few airlines to have a full fledged premium economy product (which is set to get even better sometime soon... oops did I just say that? )

 

But there's good, and then there's spectacular.

 

I have lots of friends who work for BA, even they were surprised that BA scored airline of the year and think the ranking is a complete farce after looking at the finer details.

Edited June 8, 2006 by Keith T

[Pieter C. 5]

Best European Cabin Crew: SN Brussels airlines

 

OMG: This is really a joke

[Tamizi Hj Tamby 1]

Conratulations to BA! Hope that Speedbird will fly high up to skies!

[H C Chai 4]

I have lots of friends who work for BA, even they were surprised that BA scored airline of the year and think the ranking is a complete farce after looking at the finer details.

 

I thought that Skytrax airline is voted by the public?

[S V Choong 4]

Uncle Pieter, have you ever tried SN Brussel airlines? Are they quite similar to SABENA in terms of service? I read the Airlines magazine the other day, seems like they are alright.

 

Shouldn't be as bad as "SABENA" - Such A Bloody Experience Never Again!

 

I thought that Skytrax airline is voted by the public?

 

Yes, it is. Could be that lots of Brits voted for BA this year!

Thought Virgin is a preferable choice of the Brits compared to BA?

 

I remember that I saw the old Skytrax logo with stars last year. Probably was when they were still pro star alliance. But with the new logo, it looks as if they are pro one-world now

 

 

Edited June 9, 2006 by S V Choong

[Imran K. 0]

Qantas over Emirates....

 

Haihh....losing to such an airline. I think im gonna blow some briyani chunks....

 

EDIT: Want another joke?

 

 

Best Regional Airline...riiiight. Qatar Airways should have received that, if not Emirates.

Edited June 9, 2006 by Imran K.