Multiple airlines from the Middle East, including UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, have been recognized at the prestigious Skytrax World Airline Awards 2023.
Qatar Airways and Kuwait Airways won in different categories, while Emirates and Etihad Airways received remarkable rankings.
The World Airline Awards, known as the “Oscars of the aviation industry,” are an assessment of the world’s leading airlines. Singapore Airlines has taken the top spot while Qatar Airways has won three awards, which are as follows:
- World’s Best Business Class
- World’s Best Business Class Lounge – Al Mourjan Lounge
- World’s Best Business Class Lounge Dining
Aside from the above three recognitions, Qatar Airways has also been named the best airline in the Middle East.
Qatar Airways Group CEO, Akbar Al Baker, expressed delight at winning the World’s Best Business Class award. He credited the airline’s concentrated efforts for providing an exceptional customer experience.
Skytrax also announced the top 10 airlines in the Middle East for 2023. Qatar Airways secured the first position, competing with other well-known carriers like Emirates, Etihad Airways, Saudia, Oman Air, Gulf Air, Kuwait Airways, Flynas, flydubai, and Air Arabia.
Saudia, the national flag carrier of Saudi Arabia, has seen a significant rise in the rankings. Based on traveler votes, it climbed 11 positions to the 23rd spot in the 2023 rankings. This improvement follows Saudia’s progress in previous years, moving from 82nd to 51st in 2017 and then to 26th in 2021.
The airline’s growth aligns with its goal to contribute to national strategies in transportation, logistics services, the aviation sector, and improving services for pilgrims visiting for Hajj and Umrah.
In another achievement for Middle Eastern aviation, Kuwait Airways has been recognized as the World’s Most Improved Airline in 2023. The award acknowledged the airline’s overall quality improvement.
AirAsia received the title of World’s Best Low-Cost Airline, a distinction it has earned every year since 2010.
Here is the list of the top 25 airlines in the world according to the 2023 rankings:
| Ranking | Airline | Country |
| 1 | Singapore Airlines | Singapore |
| 2 | Qatar Airways | Qatar |
| 3 | All Nippon Airways | Japan |
| 4 | Emirates | UAE |
| 5 | Japan Airlines | Japan |
| 6 | Turkish Airlines | Turkey |
| 7 | Air France | France |
| 8 | Cathay Pacific Airways | Hong Kong |
| 9 | EVA Air | Taiwan |
| 10 | Korean Air | South Korea |
| 11 | Hainan Airlines | China |
| 12 | Swiss International Air Lines | Switzerland |
| 13 | Etihad Airways | UAE |
| 14 | Iberia | Spain |
| 15 | Fiji Airways | Fiji |
| 16 | Vistara | India |
| 17 | Qantas Airways | Australia |
| 18 | British Airways | United Kingdom |
| 19 | Air New Zealand | New Zealand |
| 20 | Delta Air Lines | United States |
| 21 | Lufthansa | Germany |
| 22 | Virgin Atlantic | United Kingdom |
| 23 | Saudia | Saudi Arabia |
| 24 | Finnair | Finland |
| 25 | KLM Royal Dutch | Netherlands |
The World Airline Awards originated in 1999 as a global, annual airline customer satisfaction survey by Skytrax. Any airline worldwide can be nominated without restrictions or fees.
The survey focuses on personal choices made by customers to determine the best airline, highlighting it as the Passenger’s Choice Awards. Winning airlines face no charges for entry, attending the awards event, or using the award logos and results.
