PHOTO: AFP
The Skytrax Awards were established in 1999 and are compiled from the world's largest airline passenger satisfaction survey, and operate "independent of airline involvement, sponsorship or third-party influence," according to Skytrax CEO Edward Plaisted.
The awards, decided by 18.9 million passengers in 110 countries across the globe, judge airlines on everything from the quality of their food and the comfort of their seats to the friendliness of their cabin crew, according to CNN.
Qatar Airways, the state-owned flag carrier of Qatar, has been named the number one airline twice before, in 2011 and 2012, and twice been voted runner-up. This year, the airline also took home prizes for best airline in the Middle East and best business class seat.
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"It's a very clear accolade on behalf of the staff -- they are the real recipients, I'm just their leader!" CEO Akbar Al Baker told CNN after the ceremony, held as part of the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget.
The top 10 airlines in alphabetical order were: Japan’s All Nippon Airlines (ANA), Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Etihad, Taiwan’s EVA Air, Garuda Indonesia, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines and Turkish Airlines.
Turkish Airlines was the only European Airline in the top 10.
Further, AirAsia was voted best low-cost airline for the seventh year in a row. The accolade for the airline came six months after one of its planes crashed into the Java Sea killing all on board.
Read: AirAsia crash probe focuses on human error, plane damage
Garuda Indonesia's cabin crew were awarded as the best in the world, while last year's number one airline, Cathay Pacific, won the award for the best transpacific airline. Germany's Lufthansa won the award for the best transatlantic airline.
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Taiwanese carrier EVA Air was recognised as having the cleanest aircraft cabins, while Asiana, Air New Zealand and Austrian Airlines took the prizes for in-flight meals.
Further, Oneworld was rated the best airline alliance, and Emirates won for its entertainment system.
This article originally appeared on CNN.
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