For me, the journey is as much a part of the fun as the destination(s). Today, I focus on the airlines I rode. This year saw me zipping around to end up with:
- 5 times around the world
- 130,000 miles (210,000km) flown
- 83 flights
- lifetime flights: 1580
- Time inside planes: 274 hours (1.6 weeks)
- 27 airlines
- 22 countries (including three Countries for the first time!)
- 60 cities by air, bus, car, ferry and train
I thoroughly review every aspect of travel, including reservations, check-in, meals, entertainment, and in-flight services. This allows me to give every flight, and airline, a score. Yes, I am the nerd who is “wild about travel”!
90%: A Great year for my air travel
Using the rating system I give for every flight, I ended up with an overall average of 90% rating for the year. This was despite the disruptions and complaints many others experienced with the airline industry. By comparison:
- 2022: 90%
- 2021: 90%
- 2020: 92% but I also spent two-thirds of that year grounded!
- 2019: 86%
My worst year for air travel was 2002, the first year after September 11. My experience that year was a dismal 68%.
I only checked baggage in for six of the 83 flights. One bag was mislaid by the airline on one of those flights! It was never loaded in Melbourne, Australia and sat lost for four days! It eventually followed me to Bangkok, where it arrived ten days later. It reminded me why I avoid checking baggage in.
I flew half of my miles with seven of the 27 airlines. For eight of the airlines, I flew each of them once while I had multiple flights with 19 air carriers.
My Best Airlines of the Year
I nominate Qatar as the best in the world, again! They were also the airline I flew the most miles with, throughout 2023. Their impeccable service, excellent food, stunning planes and good website won me over again. They were also my favourite airline in 2019, 2020, and 2022.
In second place this year were the wonderful Singapore Airlines who were as wonderful as usual but narrowly beaten by Qatar!
I did not fly my other favourites Air New Zealand, ANA, Cathay Pacific Emirates or EVA which easily sit in my top ten airlines year after year.
The Airlines I Happily Recommend
These carriers were consistently great and I trust them for their ground and in-flight service:
- KLM Royal Dutch: 94%
- Thai Airways: 94%
- Virgin Australia: 94%
- Lufthansa: 90%
- Philippines Airlines: 90%
Pictured is my Thai Airbus 350 flight arriving into Jakarta from Bangkok.
The Airlines I believe are a Good Option
Aer Lingus, American, British, Delta, Iberian, JetBlue, Malaysia, Qantas and, Sri Lanka delivered good performances, with me rating them around 80-85%. Pleasantly surprised by American’s business class product from Europe to the USA, as normally I find them a very poor choice.
Qantas (84%) sat in this grouping, whereas in the past I have rated them higher. While they still provide an excellent product, they have not yet bounced back to previous service levels!
I was lucky to dodge Malaysia’s catering fiasco, where they cancelled their catering contract before signing for a new one. The resulting mess meant they served business class customers water and sad sandwiches on some flights and nothing on others. They asked economy passengers to “bring their own food”. This mess went on for two months. As of December, their food service is back to their old standard and I had a delicious meal on my flight with them last week. That trip also happened to be mo last flight for 2023! Kuala Lumpur Airport is being renovated, however, and the lack of easy transfers between terminals, and rows of closed shops give it a very depressing air.
I had good experiences with all of the Asian budget airlines:
- Air Asia (Malaysia): 74%
- Cebu Pacific (Philippines): 80%
- Nok (Thailand): 80%
- Scoot (Singapore): 80%,
- VietJet: 80%
All provided positive and safe experiences. I have long been a critic of Air Asia so my praise of them is a turnaround for me!
COPA and Etihad were Underwhelming
The biggest disappointment was Etihad (average 70% rating), whose business Class failed to impress me (yet again) even after four trips through the year. A decade of flying with them has me giving them an average score of 78%. That isn’t good for an airline boasting itself as a leading global carrier. Their relationship with Virgin Australia and its large range of Asian and European destinations give me a great opportunities to pick up the miles I need to retain my Virgin Australia Platinum status. Etihad’s service, however, along with their onboard experience and food options are poor. Their lounges are still lovely but not as nice as Qatar and Emirates which operate in the same region.
Compare the presentation and food included in the Middle Eastern Mezze option with Etihad on the left and Qatar on the right. NB Qatar keep plying passengers with bread while Etihad give a terse grunt every time I asked for more bread!
Copa, the Panamanian airline, was not brilliant at 69% overall rating. I was very disappointed as I had never flown them before and had hoped they have much more pleasant rides. I was shocked, to find that they throw passengers out of their Panama City Copa Club lounge well before the final flights of the day have departed. Legroom and space felt particularly tight, even in their emergency row and boarding felt hectic, stressful and disorganized. And come on crew, how about some Panamanian warmth?
The Worst Airlines of the Year
The worst airlines were: Air Malta and Jetstar (59% rating). Jetstar’s disappointing service was compounded by enough significant delays and cancellations that I have now decided to do all I can to avoid flying with them in the future. They are just not worth it.
Malta, itself is magnificent with warm people. Their airline isn’t. Air Malta do give access to some passengers to a nice lounge at Malta airport with a gorgeous rooftop terrace. But the rest of the airline sucked! I can see why they are being restructured.
It is one occasion when I think that Ryanair might be a better alternative (and I hate Ryanair!).
The Food
Qatar, Singapore, Thai and Philippine Airlines had the best meals of all the airlines, I flew. Qatar has the best starter (the Arab meze), Singapore and Thai has the best mains and the Philippines the best dessert: Chocolate lava bomb with custard to which I add ice cream(see below).
Qantas, American, Iberia, and Lufthansa catering followed. Etihad as mentioned was mediocre.
The Planes
My flights took me on 15 different aircraft types. At the end of the post is a list of all the planes, my rating for the flights on them for the super nerdy (like me) to enjoy!
The best aircraft for my long-distance trips (averaging 6,000km/ 4,000 miles) was the Airbus 380 and Airbus 350. I loved the Boeing 787 for middle-distance hops (around 4000-5000km). I had the most flights with the plane I liked the least, the narrow-bodied Boeing 737 (23 flights). I prefer the Airbus 321 and 320neo for short hops.
Is Business Class Better?
Of the 27 airlines, I flew with I got to experience Business Class with 11 of them. My preference is to sit in Business for all flights of seven hours plus. About 40% of my flights were “up the pointy end”. I use a combination of points and cash to maximise miles for price. I scour every deal website to find the best fares! As you can see, my average rating for business class was 94%.
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39% of my flights were in Premium Economy or Economy Plus. This is where I like to be for flights of three to seven hours. What airlines include in this space varies by carrier. Generally, one gets more legroom, and fewer passengers per row than coach and priority boarding. Some include better meals and drinks and others give you exactly what coach passengers get. Sometimes luggage comes with a Premium economy fare. Sometimes not. I feel my overall Coach/Economy experience in ’23 was worth 88%.
About one-fifth (19%) of my 2023 flights were in Coach/Economy with 18 different airlines. This is where you will usually find me on flights under three hours. There is a difference between Coach and Business, with Economy rated at just 82% by me in 2023
So yes, Business Class ranked higher than any other class.
In Conclusion
How was your flying year?
On Thursday, I will discuss the amazing places I got to see and experiences on my visit! NB I offset all of my flights twice over in an attempt to minimise my carbon footprint.
“ I offset all of my flights twice over in an attempt to minimise my carbon footprint.”. I was wondering.
Good! Thank you for doing so.
Thanks for the info. Good to see what a true world traveler thinks of the airlines etc.