London Heathrow and Star Alliance have won the World’s Airport of the Year at Air Transport World’s (ATW) 41st Annual Airline Industry Achievement Awards, honored jointly for their collaborative work on the new Terminal 2 at Heathrow.
The accolade was presented to Andy Garner, director airline business development, London Heathrow, and Mark Schwab, Star Alliance CEO, at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C. on 25 February.
“London Heathrow Airport truly stood out for its exceptional project in the redesign of Terminal 2 and its demonstration of what can be achieved when airports and airlines work together. Heathrow and Star Alliance have produced a marvellous facility that is a win, win for its passengers in every respect,” said ATW editor-in-chief Karen Walker.
The award is one of the first bestowed on the new Terminal 2, which opened on June 4, 2014. The purpose-built, state-of-the-art facility was jointly conceived by Heathrow Airport, Star Alliance and its member carriers with the aim of establishing a seamless hub at one of the world’s premier international airports. The building was designed by Spanish Architect Luis Vidal to be simple and intuitive, with a bright and airy atmosphere. The £2.5bn (US$3.8bn) investment is part of an overall upgrade to Heathrow Airport, which has cost a total of £11bn (US$16.9bn) over the last five years.
Schwab commented, “In June last year we rang in a new era for our customers, member carriers and employees at London Heathrow. Feedback we have received so far confirms that we offer our customers a superior travel experience, are creating new business opportunities for our member carriers and providing an improved working environment for employees. It is great to see our joint efforts culminate in receiving the prestigious Air Transport World Airport of the Year Award; the first time ever that this award is being given jointly to an airport and an airline alliance.”
Heathrow’s Garner added, “We are absolutely delighted to win this coveted award. This is a very valuable accolade within the airline industry and our success is the result of a strong collaboration with over 180 organizations, particularly Star Alliance, to deliver such a complex project. Our passengers are pleased with the result – our airport service quality scores show that if Terminal 2 were an airport in its own right we would have the best customer service scores in Europe. We couldn’t be more proud of what we have achieved so far and this award is a step towards fulfilling our ambition to become one of the best airports in the world.”
