Air New Zealand wins “Airline of the Year”, 2020

For the sixth time in its 80 years of operation, Air New Zealand has won the Airlineratings.com’s “Airline of the Year” for 2020.

Not only did Air New Zealand win, but it ranked very highly in virtually all categories, as well as winning the Best Premium Economy award, also for the sixth time.

“Air New Zealand is a clear industry leader which is remarkable when it is up against much larger global carriers. The airline is committed to excellence in all areas of its business with its employees across the globe consistently delivering exceptional customer service.”   

AirlineRatings.com editor-in-chief Geoffrey Thomas

Air New Zealand employs 12,500 staff to facilitate 17 million customer journeys each year.

The AirlineRatings.com’s panel of seven judges from Australia, USA, France and the UK collectively possess more than 200 years of aviation experience, assess airlines on 12 key criteria for the awards each year. Categories include customer reviews, safety, environmental leadership, product offerings, fleet age and profitability.

The Top 10 Airlines overall

1. Air New Zealand
2. Singapore Airlines
3. All Nippon Airways
4. Qantas
5. Cathay Pacific
6. Emirates
7. Virgin Atlantic
8. EVA Air
9. Qatar Airways
10. Virgin Australia

Key Award Categories

Best first class – Singapore Airlines

Best business class – Qatar Airways

Best premium economy – Air New Zealand

Best economy class – Virgin Australia

Best cabin crew — Virgin Australia

Most improved airline – Cebu Pacific

Best lounges – Qantas

Best domestic airline – Qantas