Star Alliance Takes Best Alliance Title At Skytrax World Airline Awards For Sixth Time - 19 July, 2012

Three of the Top Five Airlines are Star Alliance members Member Carriers Claim a Total of 19 Awards

FRANKFURT, Germany – July 19th , 2012 – Star Alliance, the way the Earth connects, has again claimed the Best Airline Alliance title at the prestigious Skytrax World Airline Awards, winning this category for the sixth time in the last seven years. In addition, three Star Alliance member carriers were ranked in the overall top five of the world’s best airline category – Asiana Airlines took the runner up spot, with Singapore Airlines coming third and ANA fifth.

Accepting the award, Lee Hock Lye, Vice President Products and Services, Star Alliance said: “This award could not have come at a more appropriate time, as we are celebrating Star Alliance’s 15th Anniversary and we would like to thank our customers for their years of loyalty. As the results of this survey show, the over 18 million travellers who voted have a clear alliance favourite. This confirms once again that our customer proposition - providing global reach through our world-wide network, offering enhanced frequent flyer benefits and recognising the value of the international traveller, irrespective of the member airline they are travelling on – is understood and appreciated by the market”.

Star Alliance was the first airline alliance to receive the Best Alliance Award from Skytrax when the category was first introduced in 2005 and has since held the award six times.

The Skytrax passenger survey for the 2012 awards covered over 200 airlines, from the largest international airlines to small domestic carriers, and measured standards across more than 38 different items of airline front-line product and service. The survey was conducted over a 10-month period, surveying more than 18.8 million passengers representing over 100 different nationalities across the world.

The World Airline Awards are regarded as the primary benchmarking tool for Passenger Satisfaction levels of airlines throughout the world. The unique survey format is based on analysis of business and leisure travellers and across all cabin classes (First, Business, Premium Economy and Economy).

The study analyses customer satisfaction for the Airline Passenger Experience, across the Airport and Onboard environments - check-in to boarding, onboard seat comfort, cabin cleanliness, food, beverages, inflight entertainment and staff service. 

In addition to the alliance award, 19 individual categories were taken by Star Alliance member carriers and two by future members:

Aegean Airlines

Best Regional Airline in Europe

Air Canada

Best International Airline in North America

ANA

Best Airline Transpacific

Asiana Airlines

Best Airline Asia

Asiana Airlines

Best Airline Economy Class Airline Seat

EVA Air*

Best Airline Staff Service in Asia

Lufthansa

Best Airline in Western Europe

Shenzhen Airlines*

Best Regional Airline in China

Singapore Airlines

World’s Best Economy Class

Singapore Airlines

Best Economy Class Onboard Catering

South African Airways

Best Airline in Africa

South African Airways

Best Airline Staff Service in Africa

Swiss International Air Lines

Best Business Class Onboard Catering

TACA Airlines

Best Airline in Central America / Caribbean

TACA Airlines

Best Staff Service in Central America / Caribbean

TAM Airlines

Best Airline in South America

TAM Airlines

Best Airline Staff Service in South America

THAI

World’s Best Airport Services

Turkish Airlines

Best Airline in Europe

Turkish Airlines

Best Airline in Southern Europe

Turkish Airlines

Best Premium Economy Class Airline Seat

* future Star Alliance member carrier.

About Star Alliance:

The Star Alliance network was established in 1997 as the first truly global airline alliance to offer worldwide reach, recognition and seamless service to the international traveller. Its acceptance by the market has been recognised by numerous awards, including the Air Transport World Market Leadership Award and Best Airline Alliance by both Business Traveller Magazine and Skytrax. The member airlines are: Adria Airways, Aegean Airlines, Air Canada, Air China, Air New Zealand, ANA, Asiana Airlines, Austrian, Avianca, TACA Airlines, Blue1, Brussels Airlines, Copa Airlines, Croatia Airlines, EGYPTAIR, Ethiopian Airlines, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways, SWISS, TAM Airlines, TAP Portugal, Turkish Airlines, THAI, United and US Airways. EVA Air and Shenzhen Airlines have been announced as future members. Overall, the Star Alliance network offers more than 21,500 daily flights to 1,356 airports in 193 countries.