Best Airlines of the Year

When it comes time to travel among hundreds of different airlines, we often ask ourselves which airline is the best? Each person has their own criteria, from luxury, comfort, safety, and punctuality to delicious food and beautiful flight attendants. But which airline was the best in 2015? One of the most reputable rankings of airlines in the world is conducted by Airline Rating. According to this, Air New Zealand from a country in the southwestern Pacific has been named the best airline of the year considering various factors including comfort, safety, staff behavior standards, and customer satisfaction. But what features have allowed an airline from a country like New Zealand to surpass all its powerful competitors in America, Europe, and the Gulf countries? Air New Zealand is considered the largest airline in New Zealand, with its main hub at Auckland Airport. This airline has a modern fleet including 28 Airbus A320s for short-haul flights, five Boeing 767s, 15 Boeing 777s, and six Boeing 787s for long-haul flights. This company, which was one of the first recipients of the most modern Boeing aircraft, the 787, has ordered six more of these aircraft and 13 Airbus A320neos. With this fleet, Air New Zealand has only 54 aircraft, which is fewer than many well-known airlines in the world, but its high efficiency and golden service have made it the top airline of the year. CNN's news network has noted in its analysis of the best airlines of the year that Air New Zealand is commendable for its innovations and respect for the environment. This airline has also managed to secure several top titles in other categories of the best airlines of the year, such as in the economy and luxury economy flight sections, where Air New Zealand was named the best airline in the world. Proper design for passenger space, suitable seating with adequate space, appropriate food, and good staff behavior were the main factors in these selections. Airlines usually consider smaller legroom and seats in the economy section to increase the number of seats and profits, while Air New Zealand has preferred lower profits and provided more space for passengers in this flight section. Nevertheless, this company has still not been able to compete with Gulf airlines in the first-class section. In the first-class section, Etihad Airways has been able to create a small room for each wealthy passenger in this class by utilizing the spacious Airbus A380. This company launched a large advertising campaign in 2015 to promote this part of its services and released several promotional clips featuring famous actress Nicole Kidman to attract the world's wealthy to use this class of flights. Etihad Airways has recently become the main competitor of two other companies, Emirates and Qatar Airways, in luxury flight services and has managed to surpass both of its rivals. Etihad Airways was established in November 2003 by the command of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and currently operates direct flights to about 100 destinations in the Middle East, Europe, North America, Africa, Asia, and Australia daily. The headquarters of this company is located in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and Abu Dhabi International Airport is the hub of this airline. Etihad currently has 120 modern aircraft and has ordered about 200 new aircraft to expand its routes. The new orders include 10 Airbus A320neos, 26 Airbus A321neos, 62 Airbus A350s, five Airbus A380s, 28 Boeing 777s, 66 Boeing 787s, and one Airbus A330. In the business class section, Singapore Airlines, which has always been among the best airlines in the world in recent years, has managed to secure the best title with its calming passenger space design and excellent catering with a diverse menu that includes various East Asian dishes. Singapore Airlines was founded in 1947 by Malayan Airways. The hub of this airline is Changi Airport in Singapore. This airline is the flag carrier of Singapore and has transported over 80 million passengers in the last five years, and it is currently considered one of the five largest airlines in the world. In the low-cost airline section, Virgin America was named the best airline of the year. Virgin America is an American airline that was launched in 2004 by the Virgin Group. The owner of the Virgin Group is the famous British billionaire Richard Branson. The Virgin Group companies have faced significant criticism in recent years for their portrayals of women, but nonetheless, Virgin has managed to attract many customers by focusing on beautiful flight attendants and advertising that emphasizes sexual appeal. Most of the aircraft in the Virgin America group, which is a low-cost airline in the United States, are Airbus A320s. Besides Virgin America, the Virgin Group also owns another airline in the UK called Virgin Atlantic. In the catering and food section, the best score was achieved by the Australian company Qantas. Qantas, the flag carrier airline of Australia and the largest airline in the country, was established in 1920. This company is currently considered the third oldest and active airline in the world after KLM and Avianca.