I really enjoyed this recent RankingRoyals visualisation of the top 20 safest airlines in the world according to AirlineRatings.com. This is reproduced with their permission. In coming up with its list, the reviewers at airlineratings.com consider a range of factors, including audits from aviation’s governing and industry bodies; government audits; aircraft crashes and serious incident records; profitability, industry-leading safety initiatives, and fleet age. It’s also important to keep in mind that airline safety ratings are not absolute measures of an airline’s safety record, and different agencies may have different opinions based on their criteria and…
Virgin Australia
Tag Archives for Virgin Australia.
2019 End of Year RTW Trip- lets go!
This is my Christmas-New Year Round the World trip. Flying out this week for an intensive few weeks. Five European Cities, five Asian cities, four in the Americas with an Australian start and finish. I would love some suggestions for Tallin (never been) and Berlin which I have not been to for five years. Christmas markets, two weddings and lots of catch ups with friends will be all part of the experience. I go from 37 degrees Celsius (99F) to minus four (25F) so packing all in one carry on bag is always a challenge.…
My 2019 Travel Plans -What are yours?
What are your travel plans for 2019? At this stage I plan to visit 15 countries across the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Pacific. . I plan to visit two new countries this year- probably the two will be in Eastern Europe. In Asia, I have plans to go to Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.There will be at least two diversions to Europe, one of which will involve Christmas markets! The Pacific will see me travel around Australia and New Zealand and across to the Americas. I have now flown 105 airlines. I…
Ten of My Faves -My Top Airlines
People often ask me what are my favourite airlines? Here is the answer, after 1300 flights on 103 airlines almost 75 times around the world. Of the 103 different airlines I have travelled on, two of them I will never choose to fly on again (Air Asia and Ryanair) and two I regularly avoid (TigerAir and United). Others have merged or gone bust. My top ten currently ranked favourites are: 10. Virgin Australia -in a few short years, they have transformed themselves from a budget carrier to a full service global carrier. I really enjoy…
Regrets or No Regrets? Flying Tiger Australia after a six year absence
Some Background: With a Low-Cost Carrier, you always get what you pay for. Last time, I tried to fly Tiger, I discovered to my chagrin, they close their check-in time 15 minutes earlier than any other airline in Australia! I missed the flight by two minutes and I have not been near them for six years! Today’s flight was a return trip from Melbourne to Canberra in Australia. My trepidation Tiger has had a reputation for poor customer service, extensive nickel and diming, delayed flights and lost luggage. So it was with some trepidation that…
All of My 2016 Trip Reports
As mentioned earlier this month, I flew 119 times for business and pleasure last year with 20 airlines in 2016. Big highlights of the year were my first five flights on the 787 Dreamliner, my first flights with Sri Lankan, my 380th flight with Qantas, my 350th flight on a Boeing 737 and flying into the Maldives. Here are the year’s ten Trip Reports (oops I need to post more Trip Reports!): 2016’s Best flight: My 380th Qantas flight in A380 FIRST – My Flight Rating: 96% (4.8 out of 5) My 2nd 787: Thai Business Brisbane…
My Middle Eastern Airlines Dilemma
I am flying from Dubai to Bangkok in December and I am overwhelmed by the sheer number of options for the 5000km/3000 mile flight. There are hundreds of viable Business Class and Economy Class options. If I travel the hour and a half journey by car to Abu Dhabi, there are hundreds more. While only three airlines (FlyDubai, Emirates and Thai) run direct services, they still have ten direct services a day between them. Multiple indirect services go via a whole range of fascinating stopover places! Kazakhstan anyone? So I kept playing and searching. I found in…
The World’s Best Airlines -My experience vs Skytrax
The annual Skytrax awards reveal last year’s best airlines as voted by passengers. The 2016 results were announced at the Farnborough Airshow this week. (One day I will get to the show!). Looking at the results, their awards are closely aligned to what I have experienced – with some minor exceptions. The Skytrax Top Ten does not dramatically change each year. It just seems to slightly rearrange! The same names have dominated the top 20 airlines continually. Of the Top ten ranked airlines, Skytrax nominated, I have flown eight. The 2016 winners are: Emirates (EK), United Arab…
After 299 times, I still don’t like the B737!
There are many reasons to like the Boeing 737. It is reliable. It is prolific (over 8,500 built). It has been around for almost 50 years. It has a fantastic safety record. It is fuel efficient. It is not an unattractive plane to look at. I have never liked it. This week I reached a milestone with my 299th flight on a 73. There is no other plane I have been on as many times. The 737 has taken me 340,000km (212,000) to 91 airports on five continents. I have disembarked as far south as Queenstown,…
My Top Five Airlines of 2014
I feel this post is almost a repeat of the last two years! Not much has changed for me at the top of the airline pecking order! I did fly fewer times and far fewer kilometres than other years. I did a lot more surface travel through Asia and can certainly give you the best and worst bus companies and rail operators! I rate each flight I take for every factor from Booking to Check-in to deplaning. and keep a tally of my rating using Flightmemory.com. The scores averaged out give me the ranking…
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