Look Before You Book: The World's Best Airlines

No US airlines made it into the list of the 10 best world airlines compiled by Skytrax, a respected researcher and tracker of airline and airport performance. I am sure that didn’t surprise anyone. Emirates ranked as the number one airline in the world and Qatar Airways came in at number two.

To determine rankings in diverse categories as well as to compile overall ratings, Skytrax analyzed 13.25 million airport survey questionnaires completed by 106 different nationalities of airline customers.

The ratings prove most useful when you have a choice of carriers and airports. Most of the time, I confess, I focus on cost, booking the best deal, and sometimes enduring a long layover to save many hundreds of dollars. Still, it’s wise to know the highly rated carriers so that when you have a choice, you can make a good decision. And if anyone is gifting you airline tickets, the following are the top carriers to book.

Skytrax’s World’s Best Economy Class Airlines 2016

No US airlines made this list.

1. Asiana Airlines

2. Qatar Airways

3. Singapore Airlines

4. Cathay Pacific

5. Emirates

6. Thai Airways

7. Turkish Airlines

8. Etihad Airways

9. ANA All Nippon Airways

10. Garuda Indonesia

Skytrax’s World’s Best Economy Class Airline Seats 2016

Yet again, no US airlines made this list.

1. Asiana Airlines

2. Japan Airlines

3. Korean Air

4. Singapore Airlines

5. Thai Airways

6. Qatar Airways

7. ANA All Nippon Airways

8. Etihad Airways

9. Garuda Indonesia

10. EVA Air

Skytrax’s World’s Best Premium Economy Class Airlines 2016

No US airlines made this list either.

1. Air New Zealand

2. Qantas Airways

3. Lufthansa

4. Japan Airlines

5. Cathay Pacific

6. Air France

7. China Airlines

8. Aeroflot Russian Airlines

9. Singapore Airlines

10. Virgin Australia

Skytrax’s World’s Best Premium Economy Class Seats 2016

Nope, no US carriers on this list.

The best seats overwhelmingly belong to the best carriers. Some move up or down a notch. For example, Lufthansa, number three overall for premium economy service, ranked as number two for airline seats and Qantas, number two for overall for premium economy, rated number four for premium economy seats.

Skytrax’s World’s Best Business Class Airlines 2016

You won’t be sitting in a US carrier’s plane if you want a top 10 ranked business class seat, unless the US airline has a code share arrangement with one of the following best airlines. When applicable, check out the code share arrangement for the flight you are considering.

1. Qatar Airways

2. Singapore Airlines

3. Etihad Airways

4. Emirates

5. Cathay Pacific

6. ANA All Nippon Airways

7. EVA Air

8. Turkish Airlines

9. Air France

10. Lufthansa

Skytrax’s World’s Best First Class Airlines 2016

No US carriers landed among those offering the best first class. Look for codeshare arrangements with a US carrier or book the seat and service of your dreams directly.

1. Etihad Airways

2. Cathay Pacific

3. Air France

4. ANA All Nippon Airways

5. Singapore Airlines

6. Emirates

7. Lufthansa

8. Qatar Airways

9. Qantas Airways

10. Garuda Indonesia

Follow Candyce H. Stapen on Twitter: @FamilyiTrips