The Belgian consumer protection magazine Test Achats has compared the quality and reliability of 17 airlines in Europe (+ American Airlines). Here is a summary of their ranking.
Punctuality
Top 3
Bottom 3
Value for money
Top 3
Bottom 3
Seats
Top 3
Bottom 3
Staff/flight attendants
Top 3
Bottom 3
Check-in procedure
Top 3
Bottom 3
The ranking was established based on feedback from Belgian customers, which explains why some airlines are not in the list. I am not sure which airlines were excluded. There is no mention of Air France, Swiss Air, Austrian Airlines, SAS or Finnair. Air France is surely listed, but never made the top or bottom 3.
It's amazing how well cultural stereotypes apply to airlines regarding punctuality. German and Dutch-speaking companies top the list, while Latin countries (Italy, Spain, Portugal) pay the least heed to it.
The staff ranking is surely biased by the fact that respondents were Belgian, as the three airlines on top are Belgian (well JetairFly is the Belgian subsidiary of the UK's TUI Travel), and therefore communication problems should be less frequent.
Punctuality
Top 3
- Lufthansa
- Brussels Airlines
- KLM
Bottom 3
- TAP Portugal
- Iberia
- Alitalia
Value for money
Top 3
- RyanAir
- British Airways
- easyJet
Bottom 3
- TAP Portugal
- Iberia
- Alitalia
Seats
Top 3
- American Airlines
- KLM
- British Airways
Bottom 3
- Thomas Cook Airlines
- RyanAir
- TNT
Staff/flight attendants
Top 3
- TNT
- JetairFly
- Brussels Airlines
Bottom 3
- Alitalia
- Iberia
- RyanAir
Check-in procedure
Top 3
- Lufthansa
- Brussels Airlines
- KLM
Bottom 3
- Iberia
- Alitalia
- RyanAir
The ranking was established based on feedback from Belgian customers, which explains why some airlines are not in the list. I am not sure which airlines were excluded. There is no mention of Air France, Swiss Air, Austrian Airlines, SAS or Finnair. Air France is surely listed, but never made the top or bottom 3.
It's amazing how well cultural stereotypes apply to airlines regarding punctuality. German and Dutch-speaking companies top the list, while Latin countries (Italy, Spain, Portugal) pay the least heed to it.
The staff ranking is surely biased by the fact that respondents were Belgian, as the three airlines on top are Belgian (well JetairFly is the Belgian subsidiary of the UK's TUI Travel), and therefore communication problems should be less frequent.