APA Issue 1, 2021
INDUSTRY NEWS
LEADING BY EXAMPLE – ASIA-PACIFIC’S 2020 ASQ WINNERS It might have been easy for the region’s airports to let their usual high customer service standards drop in 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic significantly reduced their passenger numbers, but ACI’s Airport Service Quality (ASQ) awards prove otherwise, with 30 winning Best Airport by Size accolades and nine picking up new Best Hygiene Measures by Region honours. Winners of the Best Airport by Size in the Asia-Pacific region included China’s Haikou Meilan (HAK) and Shenyang Taoxian (SHE) airports which shared top prize with India’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (HYD) in the 15-25mppa category. Beijing Daxing (PKX) and Bengaluru-Kempegowda (BLR) which finished joint top in the 25-40mppa category, and a magnificent seven that couldn’t be separated for top spot in the Over 40mppa section – Beijing Capital (PEK), MumbaiChhtrapati Shivaji Maharaj (BOM), Guangzhou Baiyun (CAN), Delhi-Indira Gandhi (DEL), Shanghai Pudong (PVG), Shenzhen Bao’an (SZX) and Singapore Changi (SIN). In the Middle East, Jordan’s Queen Alia International Airport (AMM) retained its title in the 5-15mppa category for the third year running and Abu Dhabi International Airport (AUH) triumphed in the category for airports handling 15-25mppa. To take into account the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the airport industry’s response to it, the
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2020 ASQ passenger survey included a number of hygiene-related questions to allow for the introduction of a new award for Best Hygiene Measures by Region. And the inaugural list of 33 global winners of the award included seven Asia-Pacific gateways – Beijing Daxing (PKX), Chandigarh (IXC), Depati Amir (PGK), Husein Sastranegara (BDO), Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose (CCU), Pune (PNQ) and Soekarno-Hatta (CGK) – and two from the Middle East, Saudi Arabia’s King Khaled International Airport (RUH) and Salalah (SLL) in Oman. ACI believes that the hygiene awards provide airports with a reliable method of gauging passengers’ response to the new health measures and recognises airports’ success in responding to the intense focus on hygiene. “Even as our members battled the debilitating impact of the virus throughout 2020, airports in different size categories in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East maintained their focus on the customer and their evolving needs,” said ACI Asia-Pacific’s director general, Stefano Baronci. “We congratulate our airport members for this high accolade which sets the stage for a recovery that puts the traveller first.” The full list of 2020 ASQ winners, including all of the Best Airport by Size & Region, can be viewed here.
