A survey of more than 30,000 members of the consumer group Which? has painted a gloomy picture of the state of the UK airline industry.
The table found that satisfaction levels for long-haul flights operated by British Airways were just ‘average’, with the national carrier ranking 18th in a list of 42 domestic and international airlines.
Even Britain’s highest-place long-haul airline, bmi, failed to make it into the top five – while for short-haul destinations Thomas Cook, MyTravel and First Choice were all in the bottom six.
In the low-cost sector, easyJet failed to get top marks for ‘value for money’ – with several full-fare carriers matching or even beating their prices – and it scored only a “reasonable” rating for cleanliness of planes and staff helpfulness.
Commenting on the disappointing findings, Which? editor Neil Fowler suggested that UK airlines are lagging behind their continental rivals.
“You might think that you get what you pay for, but the best European no-frills airlines prove that you can offer a stripped down service at a good price and keep your customers happy,” he said.
The report added: “No-frills doesn’t have to mean poor service,” noting that Germanwings (79 per cent) and Hungary’s Wizz Air (69 per cent) were among highest-scoring short-haul airlines.
