Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) has again been voted “Europe’s Leading Airline Business Class” in the annual World Travel Awards. The distinction is one of three earned by the Lufthansa Group in the 2015 version of these prestigious industry awards.
This is the fifth year in succession that SWISS has won the World Travel Awards’ “Europe’s Leading Airline Business Class” category, which covers both short-haul and long-haul routes. Lufthansa has also earned two 2015 World Travel Award distinctions: “Europe’s Leading Airline”, and “Europe’s Leading Airport Lounge” for its Lufthansa First Class Lounges in Frankfurt. As always, these latest World Travel Awards were bestowed on the basis of votes cast by specialists from the travel and tourism sector all over the globe.
“As The Airline of Switzerland, we are committed to giving our customers a consistently top-quality air travel product, especially in the premium segment,” says Markus Binkert, SWISS’s Chief Commercial Officer, commenting on the award. “This latest distinction as Europe’s Leading Airline Business Class acknowledges our endeavours. So we are all the more pleased to receive it.”
Enhanced Business Class product for both Europe and long-haul services
The award follows further enhancements to SWISS’s European Business Class product at the beginning of this year. These include a guaranteed free adjacent seat to maximize inflight privacy, and a new separate bus to take Business Class travellers from the aircraft to the terminal at key European airports if the flight is assigned a remote parking stand.
SWISS has further enhanced the culinary fare in its long-haul Business Class, too. The actions here include an even wider range of starters and a separate cheese course. SWISS will also be expanding its ground product for intercontinental Business Class travellers at the end of the year when it opens two new lounges in Zurich Airport’s Dock E for Senators and Business Class guests. The lounges will be located very close to the long-haul departure gates, will extend over some 2,000 square metres and will include a terrace with views of the airport, its runways and the Alps beyond. Both lounges will also offer a range of freshly-prepared meals, while the new Senator Lounge will boast a staffed bar. The Senator Lounge will accommodate 175 travellers, and the Business Class Lounge will have space for up to 200 guests.
Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) is Switzerland’s national airline, serving 105 destinations in 49 countries from Zurich and Geneva and carrying over 16 million passengers a year with its 94-aircraft fleet. The company’s Swiss WorldCargo division provides a comprehensive range of airport-to-airport airfreight services for high-value and care-intensive consignments to some 130 destinations in over 80 countries. As “The Airline of Switzerland”, SWISS embodies the country’s traditional values, and is committed to delivering the highest product and service quality. With its workforce of some 8,250 personnel, SWISS generated total operating income of CHF 5.2 billion in 2014. SWISS is part of the Lufthansa Group, and is also a member of Star Alliance, the world’s biggest airline network.