SYDNEY – Singapore Airlines has been voted the best international airline in a survey of Australian travellers.
The poll of 4,000 subscribers to consumer magazine Choice voted Qantas the worst international airline and also found Qantas’s low-cost subsidiary Jetstar to be the least liked domestic airline.
Choice asked subscribers to rate airlines for value for money, booking processes, convenience, the check-in procedure, inflight service, including food and entertainment, as well as seat comfort, leg room and cleanliness.
The story in The Age newspaper said Qantas scored 63% compared to Singapore Airlines’ 78%.
On the domestic front, Qantas mnaged a 67% rating, with consumers labelling the service “arrogant and aloof”, while Jetstar scored just 62 per cent.
One respondent described Jetstar staff as “uniformly surly, unhelpful and most definitely unwelcoming”.
Minnow Regional Express won a survey-high rating of 79% followed by Virgin Blue with 71%.
“Virgin Blue staff attempt to make what is a reasonably unpleasant experience flying with a no-frills service, light-hearted and enjoyable,” one respondent said.
One possible reason Qantas may have fared so poorly is that people may be more critical of their national carrier, Choice magazine suggested.
Travellers said they continued to fly with Qantas to earn frequent flyer points even though they rated the airline significantly lower than average.
