UK's Worst Airports - Which
 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-49628875

The UK's 'worst' airport revealed

Long queues, crowded terminals and pricey parking charges have led to Belfast International being rated the UK's worst airport in a survey by consumer magazine Which?. Customers gave the airport an approval score of 42%, saying it was "shabby", "understaffed" and had a poor layout.

It came just behind London Luton on 43% and Manchester T3 on 47%.

By contrast "cosy" Doncaster Sheffield came top, followed by Birmingham and Heathrow's Terminal 5.

In April and May this year, 4,499 Which? members were surveyed about 6,237 airport experiences in terms of satisfaction. People could mention up to four experiences, and an airport would only be included if it got more than 30 responses, with the results then weighted.

Of the 4,499 people who took part in survey, 68 of them focused on Belfast International. The airport acknowledged passengers had faced problems during the past 18 months, but said satisfaction had improved since the survey. The survey took place just after the airport invested more than £1m in its security, expanding security lanes following months of complaints about long delays. "Our new security company has taken us on in leaps and bounds with our staff," Belfast International Airport managing director Graham Keddie told BBC Radio Ulster. "It [the survey] was done in April and May before the changes were really in place, in fact we started with the changes at Easter. We have now got a tracking system in place and we're seeing more than 90% of our passengers going through in less than 15 minutes. It's perhaps legacy from the past, but again we've got to take it on board and continue to improve."

He said he believed the airport's parking charges were very reasonable and were below most other UK airports.

Of the largest airports with more than 10 million passengers a year, Luton was the worst performer, a position it has held for four years running. Despite terminal improvement works finishing in December, Luton travellers complained about "limited seating" and "congested" security queues. Aberdeen International was ranked the worst Scottish Airport for the fifth year in row, with a customer score of 50%. Customers criticised its staff and seating, with one telling Which? they only used the airport for "geographic convenience", not out of choice.

By contrast, Doncaster Sheffield topped the survey for the third year in a row, with customers calling it a "cosy airport" with no queues that was "easy to navigate". The Yorkshire hub got a customer satisfaction score of 86% - although some respondents said they wished it offered more connections than its current 55. Heathrow Terminal 5 was the best performing large airport, with a score of 66%. Customers praised its ample seating, helpful staff and toilet facilities, although there were complaints about its high parking charges.

A spokesperson for London Luton Airport (LLA) said: "We're disappointed by our ranking but pleased to see this year's customer score has improved 23% compared to last year. This highlights passengers are now beginning to see the benefits of our £160m redevelopment." They added that of the 4,499 people surveyed by Which?, only 273 had used Luton, while the airport has more than 16 million passengers a year. Steve Szalay, managing director of Aberdeen International Airport, said Which's survey was "months out of date and in no way tallies with the hugely positive feedback we're receiving from the tens of thousands of passengers who are travelling through our doors on a weekly basis".

Wow, they must be bad if MAN is only 3rd.

Let's look at this in the normal mature Belfast way

Ha ha !!!

BHX 2nd top? They must all use a different BHX to me.

What always gets me is that NO airport will admit to being bad - it's always " we've upgraded/will upgrade/might upgrade..." and they criticize the numbers of people in the survey who have complained but never have any numbers of their own to show just how good they are....................... ;)

Asturias56... Luton regularly post statistics from the official CAA surveys that are done in person at the airport with a consistently high score. The latest just a couple of days ago shows the 83% of these people recorded the airport as 'Excellent' or 'Good'. These are verified travellers as they were surveyed in the airport, whereas Which? reviewers don't even need to provide evidence they have been to or used goods/services they review.

83% might still mean they are the worst.... :E


but lets face it most UK airports are dire by international standards

I was through several remote airports in Indonesia a couple of years back and all of them were nicer than any UK airport I can think of...............

So, the Which (Witch?) survey comprised a grand total of...wait for it...6237 people....
(and that's 6237 who are Which subscribers, doubtless its own demographic)

It gets better, and I quote..."some 68 people were questioned about Belfast International..."

But SOMEONE has to conduct surveys - and 6200 is more than are normally taken for UK Opinion polls on the state of political parties (1000-2000)

As for 68 people as far as I can see about 12 were asked about a no deal BREXIT and they were all sitting around a table in 10 Downing Street

Seriously though - name a decent airport in the UK for passengers..................... for me London City is probably the best but it's not very good even so...............

awlays a baby, grape fruit!

I don't know why anyone takes these surveys seriously....I mean, they voted Aurigny as Europe's top airline on a survey sample of 42 pax...it's just noise to try and get more people to subscribe...an utter waste of bandwidth, quite frankly.

I can be hard on Luton but I will be the first to admit it is better than it was. That could change as LLAL have put in a planning application to exceed 18 million passengers without planning any terminal improvements. The issue has always been trying to squeeze a quart into a pint pot.

I keep saying on Which ? surveys that there is zero proof required that a participant has actually used a facility.

BBC and Media give it great credence as if it was a mega survey yet down play that less that 0.25% of Which? members have actually taken part adn there is zero verification of usage of anything. It is False and Misleading advertising.

BHX
 

Depends when you last used it and the time the people were asked.

I fly from BHX only a few times a year but usually summer but in general I would say it is bearable: -

2017 - Absolutely dire (August )both outbound and inbound experience although this eased I believe when Monarch went under (used Gatwick in April 17 and very mixed due to a rubbish gate outbound with a short delay and poor experience in arrivals)
2018 - Okay. Outbound fine (Feb & July) and inbound average (Used Heathrow T3 in October, Okay outbound but FR experience on BA BUD and inbound disgusting treatment at the egates which I felt compelled to complain about - ala JFK staff)
2019 - Good (30th June). Outbound excellent and inbound okay, usual wait for steps and baggage,

I would say BHX's under-performance in respect of passenger figures in 2018 and 2019 is main factor for the better than usual reviews

Pete

Very true. In their attempt to make LCY into Heathrow East, they've turned what was a gem of an airport into just another crowded, uncomfortable and unpleasant airport. Don't ever make the mistake of arriving too early to check in for your flight, whether it's a connecting flight or not, because there isn't a single chair to be found on the ground floor, and even the Pret has been halved in size.

Which send their surveys to a sample of their members. I think they select from members who are regular flyers. Whether that sample is large enough, ask a statistician. I think it unlikely that the responders include the sort of trolls that infest TripAdvisor and the like. It's quite expensive to join.

"New survey shows Which airport survey is a load of b------s"
(based on 100% responses from a survey group of drinkers in the pub last night,
survey size six people),

No verification is required as to being a frequent flier.