First class on board a Singapore Airlines Airbus A380.
The last time Singapore Airlines took the top slot was 2018. The airline’s first-class cabin was highlighted as one of the features that put it above its competitors.
Singapore Airlines’ chief executive,Goh Choon Phong,said the carrier had emerged “stronger and fitter” from the pandemic. Last month the airline announced a record profit of $2.42 billion,buoyed by the reopening of China and other countries across Asia.
Asia and the Middle East dominated the awards as usual,with Air France (No.7) the only airline from Western Europe to make the top 10.
Qantas,which made a surprise climb to No.5 from No.7 in last year’s rankings,despite widely reported issues with customer service,baggage handling and delays,dropped out of the top 10 for the first time since 2018. Its fall to 17th represents the airline’s lowest ranking in the history of the awards.
A Qantas spokesperson said the survey started nine months ago “when it was clear our service wasn’t back to our best.”
“A lot has changed since and if you ran this survey today,the results would be very different. We’ve worked hard to improve and the feedback from customers shows we are.”
Outgoing Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce saidearlier this year that the period of mass cancellations and delays,combined with sky-high fares,was coming to an end and that the airline was “getting back to its best”.