World's best airport named; Chch Airport plummets in Skytrax rankings

Christchurch Airport. Photo: Getty Images

Dubbed the 'Oscars of the Skies' the Skytrax World Airport Awards are one of the airline industry's most prestigious red carpet events. And like their Hollywood counterpart, there was plenty of drama this year.

After years of dominance, Singapore's Changi Airport has been dethroned by a rising runway in the Persian Gulf, with Qatar's Hamad International named best airport in the world for 2021.

Second place went to Tokyo's Haneda Airport, ahead of Changi which landed in third.

New Zealand and Australian airports were not completely overflown, but they did suffer from a year of closed borders.

Changi Airport's Jewel terminal. Photo: Supplied

Auckland Airport crashed out of the top 30 to No 35, falling six places.

Christchurch Airport fell 14 places to 79. Similarly, Sydney International Airport lost two places, landing at 28.

"As travel hubs worldwide have been impacted by the pandemic, Hamad International Airport was undeterred by the global travel disruptions and continued with its expansion plans while introducing additional airport health and safety standards," said Skytrax's Edward Plaisted.

As the gateway to the world's biggest sporting event next year, the 2022 FIFA World Cup is set to bring hundreds of thousands of international visitors to Qatar. Not even the Covid-19 pandemic can dent enthusiasm for the World Cup.

Similarly, it was Haneda Airport's cleanliness during the delayed 2020 Olympics that saw it named the best in Asia and second best overall.

The Olympics provided a good haul for airports in Japan. Tokyo had two airports in the top five with Narita International Airport making the list, alongside Osaka's Kansai International Airport in ninth.

Munich Airport in Germany was named Europe's best airport, taking the honour off London's Heathrow Airport. However, the UK airport was the best large airport 20-25 million passengers.

China's super airport, Guangzhou Baiyun, was a rising star. Carrying 35-45 million passengers a year, China's best airport landed at No 14, up from No 30 last year.

The world's top airports 2021