A new ranking has revealed the worst airlines in Europe, based on reliability, payment behaviour for compensation, and customer satisfaction. Flightright, the German company that helps air passengers claim compensation for delays, cancellations, and denied boarding, evaluated cthe 20 largest airlines in Europe, listing them in a table from the lowest rating on the top to the highest rating at the bottom.
The worst performing airline, according to Flightright, is Finnair. Following close behind were low-cost airlines Vueling and Ryanair. Despite its premium reputation, Finnair, the flag carrier and largst airline in Finalnd, had a low score of 2.48 out of 10. In Q2, the airline’s profits plunged by 76.4% due to industrial action, which also impacted operational stability. This, alongside unreliable summer schedules, resulted in sudden last-minute changes with limited rebooking options.
A Reddit user commented: “I have travelled with Finnair four times in the past six months, and all travelled have had some issue – cancellation, postponement, paid seat for my partner given to someone else, impossible to drop my luggage before a 17 hours journey due to system failure.”
Another added: “As others have said, the last year has been poor for Finnair from strikes. But at the same time I haven’t seen too much active resolve on these issues and giving the customers s****y service as a result.
“Also their flights are expensive, the service onboard is poor and the planes are dirty. I’m really struggling to recommend them. The only exception being safety.”
A Finnair spokesperson said: “Unfortunately, industrial action by the Finnish Air Line Pilots’ Association (SLL) and the Finnish Aviation Union (IAU) has affected the reliability of our flights this year, as we’ve been forced to cancel flights due to these disruptions. The prolonged disputes have had a widespread impact on our customers, which is reflected in the results of this survey.
“We are pleased that we have reached agreements with all our employee groups, our cabin crew, pilots, and ground personnel, and all the industrial actions are now behind us. We can now operate our flights with the level of reliability our customers expect from us.”
Full list of 10 worst airlines in Europe, according to the report:
1. Finnair – 2,48 – Strikes, last-minute cancellations
2. Vueling – 2,52 – High summer cancellations, poor compensation
3. Ryanair – 2,58 – Delays, hidden fees, aggressive policies
4. easyJet – 2,68 – Service cuts, schedule instability
5. KLM – 2,72 – Customer service decline
6. British Airways – 2,72 – Long refund processing, long-haul issues
7. Wizz Air -2,72 – Engine reliability concerns
8. Condor – 2,72 – Older fleet, inconsistent reliability
9. Swiss International Air Lines AG – 2,76 – Delays and ticket rebooking problems
10. Turkish Airlines – 2,80 – Long-haul complaints, compensation delays