ACI Media Press Release Archives (2004)

In January 2004, the new AETRA customer satisfaction survey was launched by Airports Council International (ACI) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA), superseding the eleven year old Global Airport Monitor. The 2003 results are the last under the old formula, and airports have now transferred their membership into the new AETRA program.

In the rankings by region, Minneapolis, Copenhagen, Singapore and Dubai were evaluated as best airports in North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East respectively. Rankings by size of airport placed Dubai as first among airports with over 15 million passengers annually. Cape Town ranked first among airports with between 5 and 15 million passengers, while Halifax placed top in the less than 5 million passengers per year category. Cape Town showed the greatest improvement in customer satisfaction, while Minneapolis was ranked first for its domestic operations.

In recognition of the leading levels of service reflected in surveys at Hong Kong International Airport both before and after the SARS Crisis, IATA / ACI are making an exceptional and special award in the Best Airport Worldwide category in the 2003 AETRA Annual Results.

Speaking on the cooperative effort between IATA and ACI, IATA Director General and CEO Giovanni Bisignani said "Joining forces with ACI to produce AETRA is a great example of the efforts that our industry makes to improve on passenger service levels. I congratulate the airports ranking high in the survey. Their hard work sets challenging benchmarks for other airports to achieve."

Robert Aaronson, ACI Director General said, "Excellence in service is not a "one-off", it is the result of continual effort and improvement, as the winning airports bear witness. ACI is working with IATA and with its airport members to fill the need for a comprehensive customer satisfaction programme that enables airports to focus their efforts on continuous improvement in service quality."

2003 AETRA Global Airport Monitor Highlights

Note: Rankings are for overall customer satisfaction for international passengers, except the Domestic category.

NOTES FOR EDITORS

AETRA surveys all aspects of the passengers' entire on-the-day experience covering 31 service ratings for 2004. AETRA takes a planned and representative sample of all traffic at the airport, by questionnaire administered at the gate to departing passengers, providing for survey results that are unbiased, representative and reliable.

A distinguishing feature of AETRA is its comprehensive quarterly data analysis for each individual airport, solely based on customer perception. AETRA is designed to enhance customer satisfaction at all participating airports for the benefit of both the passengers and the airport. Since its launch, AETRA has already gained 10 new members, the three London airports of Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted, as well as Edinburgh , Glasgow , Keflavik , Helsinki , Hamburg , Mauritius and Curacao , making it the world's leading airport benchmarking program currently covering 45 airports worldwide.

AETRA is taken from the latin word aethra meaning the upper air, clear sky and is not an acronym.

For questions concerning the results please contact either ACI or IATA:

Airports Council International (ACI)

Airports Council International (ACI) is the international association of the world's airports. Created in 1991, it is a non-profit organisation, the prime purpose of which is to foster co-operation among its member airports and with other partners in world aviation, including governments, airlines and aircraft manufacturers. Through this co-operation, ACI makes a significant contribution to providing an air transport system that is safe, secure, efficient and environmentally compatible.

IATA is the global airline trade association with over 270 airlines comprising 98% of international scheduled air traffic. IATA Business Insight is dedicated to providing specialist aviation market research, leading-edge analysis and business solutions for the aviation industry. Our expertise helps airlines and airports make strategic and resource-management choices. The department is based at the IATA Headquarters in Geneva , Switzerland ensuring that Business Insight is at the heart of all the main issues affecting today's aviation industry.

Damien Kobel
Manager
IATA - Business Insight
Tel: +41 22 770 28 04
Fax: +41 22 770 26 12
E-mail: KobelD@iata.org