Study ranks Heathrow 10th out of 10 great world airports

A U.K.-based aviation consultancy called Ascend surveyed more than 500 “industry insiders“ – from airline executives and manufacturers to frequent business travelers – on 10 of the world’s busiest airports, and London Heathrow came in last, they reported. “They even considered Heathrow to be worse than Los Angeles and JFK airports,” the analysts observed wryly. LHR’s biggest drawbacks, the survey found, were its security procedures and the long walking times to get anywhere. “For Heathrow to score so poorly against its peer group of international hub airports is simply embarrassing for BAA,” the airport’s operator, said Ascend’s chief economist, Peter Morris. “It all comes down to customer experience, and the survey tells us Heathrow just doesn’t deliver.” London Heathrow will get some big changes next spring, however, when British Airways is scheduled to cut the ribbon on its giant new Terminal 5, consolidating its operations there. As for the rest of the survey results, the airport ranking number one was Singapore, followed, in order, by Hong Kong, Dubai, Amsterdam Schiphol, Frankfurt, Paris CDG, London Gatwick, New York JFK, LAX and LHR.