DUBAI: Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) caught Travelmole’s attention this week with a media release trumpeting that it had been named the world’s best airport.
True? Well, almost.
Airports Council International (ACI) recognised Hong Kong as the world’s best airport among facilities serving 40 million-plus air passengers.
HKIA ranked second overall in the awards with the winner being Incheon International Airport in South Korea, although that wasn’t mentioned in the HKIA release.
Airports Council International surveyed more than 200,000 people at more than 90 airports worldwide for its 2006 Airport Service Quality Awards.
The Council said customers valued the cleanliness of terminal buildings, a sense of security and comfortable waiting areas.
The survey showed frequent flyers put high value on fast, hassle-free passage through the terminal and minimum contact with staff. Leisure travellers placed more emphasis on friendly and courteous staff, ACI said.
Following Incheon, three Asian hubs – Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore – came second, third and fourth in the overall rankings.
In Europe, Switzerland’s Zurich came top, and the North American regional table was topped by Dallas Fort Worth.
In the Middle East/Africa region, Abu Dhabi came out on top ahead of Cape Town and Doha.
Dubai did not make the top five in the region but as ACI’s was holding a major forum in the emirate this week, it did the right thing by giving the Director General’s Special Recognition Award to Dubai Airport “for showing leadership, innovation and commitment to quality in airport service delivery over the past decade”.
