Three South African airports made it to the top 100 list of International airline consultancy group, Skytrax, 2021 World Airport Awards on August 5. Cape Town International topped the African nominees, and was placed 33 on the list – down from 23rd position last year. Another huge accolade for Cape Town was an award for having the best airport staff on the continent.
Next up, Durban’s King Shaka International Airport ranked at number 52 down from 32 in 2020 – the airport was also voted as the best regional airport in Africa.
OR Tambo International which ranked at number 36 last year moved to 54 this year.
Skytrax Awards are largely based on evaluations of traveller experiences – from all aspects of airports – check-ins, transfers, arrivals, departures, shopping, security, immigration, etc. The lack of travel due to COVID-19 was also taken into consideration, and the extra precautions in place because of the pandemic too.
“The 2021 World Airport Awards recognise the efforts of global airports in adapting and meeting the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. The past 18 months has been the most challenging and financially difficult period ever experienced by the world air transport industry, and airports have invested to provide the safest possible environment for their customers and staff during the global pandemic. COVID-19 has impacted some regions and airports more than others, with many areas having few, if any, international routes operating for more than a year,” the committee of the Skytrax Awards said in a statement.
Hamad International Airport in Doha, Qatar ranked the top international airport in the world, up from the third position in 2020.
Tokyo’s Haneda International took second place and Singapore’s Changi International lost their number one spot in 2020 to come in third this year.
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