Airlineratings.com: A ranking based on safety & more

Airlineratings.com considers a very different set of data to create the list for the top-ranked airlines and airline products (e.g., the aircraft themselves). They claim to be “The world’s best one-stop airline safety and product rating review website.”

Airlineratings.com provides safety ratings for over 435 airlines worldwide – and every airline has a safety rating breakdown. They use a one to seven-star ranking system (with seven being the highest). In addition to airlines, Airlineratings.com provides valuable information for over 30 types of aircraft, from widebody aircraft like the Boeing 787 and the A380 to smaller jets. Other, more quirky, questions they ask and answer include questions like:

• “What are all those noises after takeoff and before landing?”

• “Why do you have to put the window shades up for landing and takeoff?”

• “How strong is a wing?”

• “Why is it so costly to fly short distances?”

They may include some data that overlaps with Skytrax as they also consider passenger reviews and reviews written by experienced aviation editors. Overall, Airlineratings.com’s list is not so much a rival to Skytrax’s list but rather a compliment to it.

Air New Zealand: 2023’s airline of the year

New Zealand’s national carrier, Air New Zealand, was named the “Airline of the Year” for 2023’s Airline Excellence Award, with the runners-up being Qatar Airways, Etihad Airways, Korean Air, and Singapore Airlines.

The Airline Excellence Award is an accolade that the small airline has received seven times since 2013. Air New Zealand is being honoured for its innovations like the SkyNest economy beds, its operational safety, the motivation of its staff, and its environmental leadership.

Other criteria included fleet age, passenger reviews, investment ratings, and other considerations. On the airline safety rating page, Air New Zealand received seven stars (including full stars for the sub-categories Fatality Free, Incident Free, and Audit).

• Average Fleet Age: 6.8 years (2022)

Air New Zealand topped the airlineratings.com‘s list of the world’s safest airlines in 2022. Not only does Air New Zealand have an exemplary safety record, but it also has a very young fleet – its aircraft have an average age of just 6.8 years in 2022. The assessment looked at crashes over the last five years, severe incidents in the previous two years, and data from audits and other relevant information.

Air New Zealand’s innovation extends into safety improvements – notably the Future Air Navigation System, which provides real-time monitoring of the engines across the fleet and other safety-related enhancements.

Air New Zealand also won Best Economy Class, Singapore Airlines was named Best First Class, and Qatar was awarded Best Business Class. North American airlines to make the 2023 Top 25 premium airline list were Delta Air Lines, Air Canada, Hawaiian, Alaska Airlines, and United Airlines.