Air New Zealand tops Airline Ranking

Air New Zealand has won the Airline of the Year Award for the second successive year

Air New Zealand has been named ‘Airline of the Year’ by Airline Ratings for the second consecutive year for its in-flight innovations, financial performance, operational safety and motivation of its staff.

The editorial team of international airline safety and product rating website, AirlineRatings, also praised Air New Zealand’s commitment to a young technologically advanced fleet and its continual focus on the environment. The airline also won the award for best premium economy class. Geoffrey Thomas, AirlineRatings editor-in-chief said:

“Quite simply Air New Zealand is an airline of first choice. And given the airline’s location and the country’s size its performance is even more remarkable,”

Air New Zealand chief executive Christopher Luxon says the award recognises the outstanding efforts of our 11,000 employees globally.

“It’s been an incredibly exciting year for Air New Zealand and this award recognises the outstanding efforts of our 11,000 employees globally. We’ve invested in new aircraft and enhancements to the customer experience and continued our strong focus on cost control and operational excellence. We head into our 75th anniversary year well positioned to continue sustainably growing Air New Zealand.”

Best Catering, Best Lounges, Best Domestic Service
Multiple prizes were doled out for down-under flyer Qantas – honored for Best Domestic Service, Best Catering and Best Lounges, with a special commendation for its safety record. The editors noted that Qantas is consistently amongst the finest airlines in the industry across all aspects.

Best Business Class
Cathay Pacific Airways has won Best Business Class and the award adds to a string of accolades the airline has won for its product offering.

Best Economy
Thai Airways picks up Best Economy Class for a product that delivers superb value for money and comfort.

Emirates Inflight Entertainment is world's best — Emirates Inflight Entertainment is world’s best

Best In-Flight Entertainment
Emirates, which was one of the pioneers of In-Flight Entertainment (IFE), wins IFE award for the second consecutive year. The airline has an IFE product that few airlines equal.

Best Low Cost Airline
For value and safety in the Low Cost Airline sector the editors selected JetBlue for the Americas, Norwegian in Europe, Kulula.com for the Middle-East/Africa and newcomer Scoot for Asia/Pacific. The editors noted that these airlines are clear industry leaders in innovation and bringing people together.

Etihad's first class suite — Etihad’s first class suite

Best First Class
Etihad Airways was voted Best First Class airline for its new upgraded product unveiled this year.

Best New World Carrier, Best Cabin Crew
Virgin Australia won Best New World Carrier, an award that recognizes the transformation that many airlines are trying to meet rapidly changing market demands. The airline also picked up Best Cabin Crew award for its outstanding staff.

Best Long Haul Airline
For excellence in Long Haul travel the AirlineRatings selected Lan Chile for the Americas, Lufthansa for Europe as well as Etihad for the Middle-East/Africa and EVA Air for Asia/Pacific.

AirlineRatings’s Top 10 Airlines for 2015