The news that Etihad airways has been named airline of the year by Air Transport World magazine, raises a question: What makes a great airline?
In accepting, Etihad’s boss, James Hogan, said the award “recognises what we set out to do as an airline 13 years ago – to be safe, profitable and simply the best”.
It’s interesting that he put the safety factor first, because it might have been tempting to put profit at number 1. Maybe that’s what the shareholders would expect. But Hogan, like all astute business operators, knows that one follows the other.
With any business where the customer has a choice, priorities are important. Nobody is going to fly with an airline they think is unsafe.
After safety and profit — essential to keep any business afloat — comes the intangible idea of being “the best”.
For airline passengers, that means a combination of things, including comfort and confidence.
Flying can be an unpleasant experience — just the idea of speeding through the air in a metal cylinder puts some people on edge. The ageing aircraft, cramped seats, rude service and cattle-herding mentality at the terminal gates that are par for the course on some airlines make things no easier.
So a good airline has to do all it can do to make passengers comfortable. That means both on the ground and in the air. There has to be a basic level of comfort and efficient, friendly service for economy passengers, and something special for premium passengers. That’s where business- and first-class lounges, limousine transfers, airport greeting services and other frills come in.
Confidence applies not just to the safety factor, but to the whole experience. Passengers need to be sure that they will have zero problems getting where they want to go. They want a no-fuss experience, and for the plane and their bags to arrive on time.
No airline gets this right all the time. As I’ve said before, Etihad has always got it right for me, but I know other people who’ve had problems. Again, the test of a good business is how they handle customers problems and how they put in place procedures to minimise or eliminate recurrences.
By winning this award, and a slew of others in recent years, Etihad is showing that it’s getting it right most of the time for most of the people.
