Qantas Airlines rises to 14th position in global airline rankings 2025
Qantas has significantly improved its global ranking, jumping to 14th place in the 2025 Skytrax World Airline Awards after a previous low. This resurgence follows substantial investments in customer experience and efforts to rebuild its reputation after controversies. Meanwhile, Virgin Australia is poised to benefit from Qatar Airways' top ranking through a new code-sharing agreement.
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Qantas has climbed back into the top tier of global airlines, securing the 14th spot in the 2025 Skytrax World Airline Awards. This marks a major recovery from its 24th-place finish in 2024, its lowest-ever ranking, following public backlash over a string of controversies during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.The Skytrax rankings are based on surveys from passengers across more than 100 nationalities. Qatar Airways retained the top position globally for the second consecutive year, followed by Singapore Airlines in second place and Cathay Pacific in third. Emirates , Qantas's international partner, came in fourth. Virgin Australia , Qantas's main domestic competitor, stands to gain from Qatar Airways' strong performance through a new code-sharing agreement, offering Australian travellers more routes to the Middle East and beyond.As per a report by The Guardian, Qantas has been working to rebuild its reputation after several scandals. These include the illegal sacking of 1,800 ground staff, resulting in a $120 million compensation payout, and a $100 million penalty for allegedly selling tickets on cancelled flights. Former CEO Alan Joyce stepped down in 2024, and the board slashed his final pay by over $9 million after an internal governance review.According to Dr Andrew Hughes of the Australian National University, Qantas's rebound reflects its investment in a customer experience overhaul, which may have cost nearly $1 billion. These upgrades include improved boarding processes, fleet renewal, and lounge refurbishments.'Qantas's experience offering is still stronger than Virgin's,' Hughes said, though he noted Virgin is expected to become more competitive in coming years with its new international partnerships.He added that while Qantas's loyalty program changes, such as increasing points required for Classic Reward flights-may frustrate some customers, the airline appears to be on track in regaining public trust.
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Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
The incredible Solly bhai story: Gavaskar's friend, got Tendulkar to Yorkshire and benefactor to hundreds of Indian cricketers in England
For four straight days, Suleman 'Solly' Adam and his family walked through the Thar desert. Scorching sun over their heads, roasting sand under their feet. Solly, just 7, held his mother's hand. His sister, 4, was perched on his father's shoulders. This was 1952 and Solly's post-partition horror story was about his family getting picked by the police from a village in Gujarat, handcuffed through the journey, released near the newly-marked border and asked to find their way to Pakistan. Puzzled over where they were headed, Solly was worried if he would be able to play his favourite sport — cricket — ever again. After a tough childhood, a teenager Solly, boarded a ship to England with just three pounds on him. With time, the family that braved the draining desert heat would settle in the land of lush green meadows, incessant rains and a scenic countryside. They would own several homes, petrol pumps, super markets and never missed a chance to play cricket. The boy, once homeless, would end up providing accommodation to countless visitors, mostly players in Yorkshire to play club cricket. Sunil Gavaskar and Imran Khan would be his close friends. 'I truly believe that difficult roads often lead to beautiful destinations and cricket has taught me a number of life lessons,' Solly, now 80, tells The Indian Express as he details his eventful life-story — one that took him from his birthplace Simlat in Gujarat to Pakistan's Karachi and now Leeds in Yorkshire. Solly has guests these days. Two days before the opening India-England Test, Gavaskar is at his home. The legend has been to this address many times before but Solly sounds excited on the phone, his voice getting drowned by the lively chatter of a family gathering in the background. 'Sunil has told me 'I am here and we will be meeting through the Test'. I am very pleased,' Solly says. There is another reason for this being special. It happens to be the inaugural Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy series. Solly and Sachin Tendulkar go back a long way. It was he who convinced both Yorkshire and Tendulkar to sign a deal in 1992 that resulted in the Indian great becoming the first-ever foreigner to call Headingley his home. Solly vividly recalls the drama that went into Tendulkar making history at Yorkshire. It started with Solly getting to know that Yorkshire had signed the Australian pacer Craig McDermott as its first overseas player. A few days later, he heard on the telly that McDermott was injured. Solly, always the enterprising businessman, sniffed an opportunity. 'The minute I came to know, I ran to the Yorkshire club. I asked them, 'Why don't you sign an Indian or Pakistani? I argued that since Yorkshire has this large Asian diaspora, they could consider Tendulkar or Javed Miandad. That was the time the great Don Bradman had said that watching Tendulkar bat reminded him of his own batting. After two to three hours, they were convinced, they opted for Tendulkar,' says Solly. But, there was a problem. The Yorkshire officials, insulated from the outside world, had no clue about how to reach Tendulkar. Pat came the reply: 'That you leave it to me'. Solly had hosted Tendulkar when he played club cricket in England. He was also a special attendee at Solly's son's wedding. When the Yorkshire offer came up, Tendulkar was in Australia, in the middle of a Test series. When Solly called, Tendulkar, stretched by the demands of international and domestic engagements, wasn't sure. Now, Solly can talk. His ever-expanding business empire was because of his talent as a deal-maker. 'I told him that he was young and he could do it. Later I asked my friend Sunil (Gavaskar) to talk to Tendulkar. While playing for Somerset, Sunil had benefited. Finally, Tendulkar was convinced and history was made,' Solly says. 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The players recognized this and they saw Sollybhai as their benefactor, well-wisher and also their Man Friday. And that is why Gavaskar had called Solly when faced with a desperate situation during a tour to England. The two had become friends by a simple Solly gesture. He offered the Little Master a samosa during an England tour. 'During those days, between Test matches the touring team would play against county sides. So in one such tour game, they lost to Yorkshire. The manager of the team was very angry and he said no to wives staying in the team hotel or traveling in the coach,' recalls Solly. 'That was the time, they used to get three pounds as daily allowance, if they booked a hotel room for their spouse it was going to cost them a pound. So Sunil called me and said, 'There's any chance the cricketers' wives can stay at your place? I said 'yeah, no problem'.' 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Indian Express
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From AI agents to cloud telephony, Zoom executives discuss company's next act
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India.com
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- India.com
India beats China and Bangladesh to become biggest player in…, shocks Pakistan due to…
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