by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 7:30 AM ET, Wed March 7, 2018
Sixteen airports are first-time winners this year in the annual Airport Service Quality Awards from Airports Council International.
In announcing the awards, ACI said the unprecedented number of newcomers to the winners' category is a sign of the increasingly competitive airport industry where service is key.
Among the first-time winners are many well-known airports as well as some airports that are not yet household names. The 16 breakthrough airports for 2017 are Rome Fiumicino (FCO), Newcastle (NCL), Athens (ATH), Zagreb (ZAG), Bandung (BDO), Indore (IDR), Ahmedabad (AMD), Casablanca (CMN), George (GRJ), Toronto Pearson (YYZ), San Jose (SJC), Cleveland (CLE), Los Cabos (SJD), Belo Horizonte (CNF) and Medina (MED).
In 2017, more than half of the world's 7.7 billion travelers passed through an ASQ airport. The awards are the only worldwide program to survey passengers at the airport on their day of travel. They measure passengers' views of 34 key performance indicators.
"Objective measurement and benchmarking are critical in driving performance in any business especially in such a competitive and dynamic one as an airport," Angela Gittens, director general, ACI World, said in a statement.
In North America, the top airport for 2017 was Canada's Toronto Pearson. It is the first award for the airport and comes after significant investments and enhancements at the facility aimed at improving customer service including working with the Canadian Air Transport Security Agency to introduce new, faster security screening.
The airport also recently completed redevelopment projects in Terminal 3 to improve shopping, dining, and ambiance. Bathrooms are also undergoing modern makeovers.
"We've set our sights on becoming the best airport in the world," Howard Eng, president and CEO, Greater Toronto Airports Authority, said in a statement. "Our passengers are the key to making that vision a reality, and we're grateful to them for taking the time to share their experiences with us."
"Together, the 49,000 people who work at Toronto Pearson-not only for the GTAA, but for the air carriers, the government agencies, the retail establishments, and more - have all helped to achieve this result. We recognize that we have more work to do to stay ahead of other great North American airports, and compete with other large international airports around the world."
In Europe, the airport taking the number one slot in the over 40 million passengers served category was Rome Fiumicino. In the Asia-Pacific region, meanwhile, there was a tie for first place between Delhi (DEL) and Mumbai (BOM).
"These winning airports have dedicated themselves to delivering a stellar customer experience. ACI World proudly recognizes the accomplishments of all airports in the global ASQ network. I look forward to celebrating with them in September," said Gittens.
According to ACI, 74 percent of the world's top 100 busiest airports are part of the ASQ network. About 600,000 individual surveys per year are conducted in 42 languages in 84 countries. The program served 343 airports in 2017.
Best Airport by Region (over 2 million passengers per year)
Africa
First place: Casablanca (CMN)
Second place: Mauritius (MRU)
Third place: Durban (DUR)
Asia-Pacific
First place (tie): Delhi (DEL); Mumbai (BOM)
Second place (tie): Beijing (PEK); Denpasar (DPS); Haikou (HAK); Shanghai Pudong (PVG)
Third place: Sanya (SYX)
Europe
First place: Sochi (AER)
Second place (tie): Malta (MLA); Moscow Sheremetyevo (SVO); Porto (OPO)
Third place (tie): Rome Fiumicino (FCO); Zurich (ZRH)
Middle East
First place: Abu Dhabi (AUH)
Second place (tie): Amman (AMM); Medina (MED)
Third place: Dubai (DXB)
North America
First place (tie): Indianapolis (IND); Jacksonville (JAX)
Second place (tie): El Paso (ELP); Ottawa (YOW); Toronto Billy Bishop (YTZ)
Third place (tie): Austin (AUS); Columbus (CMH); Dallas Love Field (DAL); Halifax (YHZ); Pittsburgh (PIT); San Antonio (SAT); San Jose (SJC); Tampa (TPA)
Latin America-Caribbean
First place: Guayaquil (GYE)
Second place: Los Cabos (SJD)
Third place (tie): Nassau (NAS); Punta Cana (PUJ)
Best Airport by Size
2-5 million passengers per year
First place: Lucknow (LKO)
Second place: Guayaquil (GYE)
Third place: Bandung (BDO)
5-15 million passengers per year
First place: Hyderabad (HYD)
Second place (tie): Balikpapan (BPN); Hohhot (HET)
Third place: Cochin (COK); Kolkata (CCU); Pune (PNQ)
15-25 million passengers per year
First place (tie): Denpasar (DPS); Haikou (HAK); Sanya (SYX)
Second place: Bangalore (BLR)
Third place (tie): Chennai (MAA); Surabaya (SUB)
25-40 million passengers per year
First place: Chongqing (CKG)
Second place: Seoul Gimpo (GMP)
Third place: Tokyo Narita (NRT)
Over 40 million passengers per year
First place (tie): Delhi (DEL); Mumbai (BOM)
Second place (tie): Beijing (PEK); Shanghai Pudong (PVG)
Third place: Taipei Taoyuan (TPE)
Best Airport by Region (under 2 million passengers per year)
Africa: George (GRJ)
Europe: Murcia (MJV)
North America: Portland Maine (PWM)
Latin America-Caribbean: Mazatlan (MZT)
Asia-Pacific: Indore (IDR)
Best Airport by Size and Region
Asia-Pacific
2-5 million passengers per year: Lucknow (LKO)
5-15 million passengers per year: Hyderabad (HYD)
15-25 million passengers per year: Denpasar (DPS)
25-40 million passengers per year: Chongqing (CKG)
Over 40 million passengers per year: Mumbai (BOM)
Europe
2-5 million passengers per year: Newcastle (NCL)
5-15 million passengers per year: Sochi (AER)
15-25 million passengers per year: Athens (ATH)
25-40 million passengers per year: Moscow Sheremetyevo (SVO)
Over 40 million passengers per year: Rome Fiumicino (FCO)
Latin America-Caribbean
2-5 million passengers per year: Guayaquil (GYE)
5-15 million passengers per year: Punta Cana (PUJ)
Middle East
5-15 million passengers per year: Medina (MED)
North America
2-5 million passengers per year: Ottawa (YOW)
5-15 million passengers per year: Indianapolis (IND)
15-25 million passengers per year: Tampa (TPA)
25-40 million passengers per year: Minneapolis (MSP)
Over 40 million passengers per year: Toronto Pearson (YYZ)
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
