Airline travel has always been in the news from the time it became commercially available in the mid twentieth century. At first, newspapers wrote airline news about record-breaking jet stunts by brave and exceptional pilots, then they would carry aviation news about government policies and how they are affecting the industry but that was years before airline deregulation emerged on the scene. After the industry was fully relieved of government involvement and airlines took charge of proceedings, the media started reporting airline news about competition among the airlines with offers of cheap airfares and great discounts on airline tickets just to attract the growing number of passengers that were beginning to take to flying.
In the recent past, airline news about the best airlines for a particular year has been one of the dominant news in the media. Thus, airline news about the top ten airlines for the year 2006 emerged as early as the first week of January. As in every Industry, the year 2006 ended with a new survey of the best airlines that made the travel industry fun for passengers. The poll asked passengers series of questions pertaining to the world's leading airlines with questions that bordered on several criteria. The survey’s questions covered the entire year and saw over 12 million active participants from a total of ninety four countries. For most passengers who believe that air travels are trips which are supposed to be enjoyed not endured, it was somehow a relief for them to know what separates the numerous airlines and how to choose their favorites.
The highly independent views resulted in six Asian airlines being ranked among the best ten worldwide, ahead of their European and American counterparts. The best airline for 2006 was named Cathay Pacific Airlines; a Hong-Kong owned carrier that majority of the passengers love to fly especially on long journeys. One of the factors used to rank Cathay pacific in the first position is the airline’s first and business class services which strives to cater for the haves in the front and have-nots in the economy seats behind. Qantas Airways of Australia became the first runner up or the next best airline while the Middle East had two spots in the top ten with the ever consistent Emirates in the third position and Qatar Airways in the eighth.
The best European airline found the 5th position and was given to British Airways. Analysts believe it achieved this feat with the help of the foiled terrorist plot in August of the year under review. Passengers confessed that they were impressed with the level of security put in place to be able to uncover a plot of such magnitude which could have cost thousands of lives and consequent damage to the aviation industry as well. The best U.S. airline on the survey was JetBlue Airlines but it did not make the top ten. The New York based price-friendly airline was chosen as the world's top low cost airline. Most of the new airlines worldwide retained the lower ranks of the survey which shows they are still trying to come to terms with the reality of running an aviation business.
Analysts observed that it was the most comprehensive poll of airlines’ passengers worldwide because it covered all strata of passengers which include business travelers, holiday makers, students, etc. Daily airline news usually highlights some of the frustrations that passengers encounter when unforeseen acts of terrorism, sabotage and extra security checks cause avoidable delays in early flight departures. The same assessment covered both aerial and terrestrial performances of the airlines to get the best airlines for the past year. It also took into account, the method of handling passenger issues like flight delays, enquiries, customer support, check-in and boarding procedures and other nitty-gritty details.
As usual, the travails of U.S. Airlines have been attributed to financial problems which they have had to face in the post September 11 era. Some have also argued that the airlines that emerged on top are those that enjoy the financial backing of their respective country’s governments. As in the past, the survey aims to commend and encourage the best performing airlines while urging the rest to step up and pep up their services to meet global airlines’ best practices.