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After a year of customer anger over delayed flights and lost luggage, Qantas has kicked off 2023 with some very welcome news.
Australia’s national airline regained its position as the world’s safest rated airline in AirlineRatings.com’s 2023 list.
Its low-cost sister airline, Jetstar, also made the list of the safest low-cost airlines in the world.
The positive news followed an incident on Monday when passengers on a Qantas plane from Sydney to the Philippines endured a nightmarish eight-hour flight to nowhere after a power outage at Manila airport forced it to turn around. .
And last week, Jetstar did something that experts say no airline has ever done before: return a flight to the airport it departed from because of a paperwork problem.
But on Tuesday, Qantas, which began flying in November 1920, overtook last year’s winner Air New Zealand to be crowned the world’s safest airline.
Qantas has surpassed last year’s winner Air New Zealand to be crowned the world’s safest airline by 2023. Pictured is a Qantas flight attendant
Although it declined to comment directly on topping the survey, Qantas has always maintained that safety is its number one priority.
AirlineRatings.com, in making its assessment, takes into account factors including major incidents, recent fatalities, aviation industry and governing body audits, profitability, industry leading safety initiatives, pilot training assessment experts and age of the fleet.
The website’s Geoffrey Thomas said: “Our 20 Safest Airlines stand out in the industry and are at the forefront of safety, innovation and the launch of new aircraft.”
“In fact, the safety margins among these top 20 airlines are very small, they are all outstanding airlines,” he said.
Jetstar recently did something that experts say no airline had ever done before: return a flight to the airport it departed from because of a paperwork problem.
Air New Zealand was second on the list, with Etihad, Qatar and Singapore Airlines completing the top five.
AirlineRatings.com, which monitors 385 airlines around the world, also published a list of the 20 safest low-cost airlines.
Thomas said there are separate listings because “it’s two different styles of operation,” but added that passengers, regardless of the cost of their ticket, should expect their flight to be safe.
“A legacy airline like British Airways, Qantas and Air New Zealand, they have different pay and conditions for their pilots,” he told Daily Mail Australia.
“Arguably they would have the best pilots in the world… but there are a lot of fantastic pilots who fly for low-cost airlines,” he said.
Although it declined to comment directly on topping the survey, Qantas has always maintained that safety is its number one priority. In the image, three pilots.
Qantas (plane pictured) has been named the world’s safest airline. Air New Zealand was second on the list, with Etihad, Qatar and Singapore Airlines completing the top five.
Passengers (above) are seen waiting at Melbourne airport after their flight to Bali went upside down following a paperwork error
Geoffrey Thomas (pictured), said legacy airlines like Qantas often have the best pilots in the world.
“What they like about low-cost airlines is that they can usually go to work in the morning and come home at night after doing three or four sectors.
“Whereas a pilot who flies, say, for Qantas or British Airways, they are usually long haul and away from home for 10 or 12 days.”
“But holistically, they are different styles of operation and so we’ve kept them separate.”
Thomas said airlines that finish just outside the top 20 “would obviously be upset, although no one has raised that issue with us…
“There are a lot of airlines that just crash,” he said.