New airline health and safety era takes-off

Firstly, thank you very much for subscribing to AirlineRatings.com enhanced Safety and Product Rating, it’s great to have you onboard and your support is very much appreciated. We are entering a new era in travel where health is now front and center and personal safety has been brought into sharp focus by such events as the Pakistan fake pilot license scandal, which extends much further than Pakistan itself. As I am sure you are aware COVID-19 is an incredible challenge for the airline industry and the entire business model has been turned on its head. While many are fearful of travel, most want to keep traveling as it’s in our DNA. Surveys have shown that the majority want to start traveling within the next six months but want to be assured it’s safe. Our team has spent months working on the criteria for a COVID-19 rating, first defining what is important and then collecting and analyzing the data from almost 400 airlines that we rate. We are updating that data on a weekly basis and may increase the criteria. Already some airlines, such as Emirates and Qatar Airways are going above and beyond and offering sanitizer kits for passengers that include masks, gloves, and wipes. Combined with the COVID-19 rating we have revised our safety rating system to capture changes in the industry that have come to light over the past two years. Our global team has been working with industry experts and airline training pilots to refine and refocus our safety rating system on outcomes rather than audits. There are increasing concerns that in some areas of the world airlines may complete a safety audit then revert to its old ways because the culture at the airline has not changed. By focusing on outcomes, rather than audits, our safety rating system is more reflective of the level of safety and the culture at an airline. However, rather than just taking all the incidents into account our team has examined 11,000 over five years to remove weather, bird strikes, and incidents that are of no fault of the airline. We will continue to refine this system as new trends or issues appear and in this weekly commentary, we will bring to your attention any airline industry safety concerns we have. But this exclusive commentary will not just be about safety. It will cover a wide range of topics such as environmental issues, inflight service, the latest aircraft types, and the best deals around the globe. So, fasten your seat belt and let’s take-off. Safe travels, Geoffrey Thomas (GT) Editor-in-Chief