World Airline Entertainment Association (WAEA) Celebrates Industry Achievements with 21st Annual Avion Awards

McLEAN, VA, USA, 17 August, 2009 – The World Airline Entertainment Association (WAEA) proudly revealed today the finalists in the Avion Awards, honoring excellence in inflight entertainment. Winners will be announced at the ceremony during the 30th WAEA Conference & Exhibition in Palm Springs, California on 5 October 2009.

This year, an overwhelming 60,000 passengers rated their IFE experience on 38 airlines that competed for the prestigious Avion Awards for Best in Region and Best Overall categories. Passengers completed online surveys administered by Skytrax, the leader in research to the world airline and air transport industry.

“Passenger voting makes this award truly representative of passenger comfort and satisfaction with their inflight entertainment experience,” says Christine Ringger, president of WAEA and IFE System Engineer and Project Manager for Swiss International Air Lines. “With incredible participation from industry and passengers, the Avion Awards will continue to increase standards for innovation in inflight entertainment.”

Skytrax administered the online survey in 11 languages to determine passenger satisfaction. The five finalists in each category listed alphabetically are:

Best in Region

Americas
Air Canada
Delta/Northwest Airlines
LAN Airlines
TAM Airlines
Virgin America

Asia and Australiasia
Cathay Pacific Airways
Korean Air
Qantas Airways
Singapore Airlines
V Australia

Europe
Air France
British Airways
Swiss International Air Lines
Turkish Airlines
Virgin Atlantic Airways

Middle East and Africa
El Al Israel Airlines
Emirates
Etihad Airways
Qatar Airways
South African Airways

Best Overall (Large Airlines)
over 25 IFE-equipped in fleet
Cathay Pacific Airways
Emirates
Qatar Airways
Singapore Airlines
Virgin Atlantic Airways

Best Overall (Small Airlines)
up to 25 IFE-equipped in fleet
Air Tahiti Nui
SAS Scandinavian Airlines
SriLankan Airlines
Swiss International Air Lines
V Australia

The 21st Annual Avion Awards Ceremony will be held on 5 October at 17:00 during WAEA’s 30th Annual Conference & Exhibition, the IFE industry’s premier event. Delivering 30 years of innovation, the WAEA will celebrate by honoring Lifetime Achievement and Outstanding Contribution awards during this special ceremony wtih video production sponsored by Post Modern Edit and SKYLINE IFE. All conference delegates and members of the press are invited to attend.

The WAEA 30th Annual Conference & Exhibition attracts hundreds of leaders from airlines and airline-suppliers with a full day of focused education sessions and the most comprehensive display of inflight entertainment and communications products and services in the world. The industry event will take place 5-8 October at the Palm Springs Convention Center in Palm Springs, California, USA.

For the complete agenda, event information and to register, please visit www.waea.org.

About WAEA
Founded in 1979 as a non-profit organization, The WAEA is the official worldwide network representing nearly 400 airlines and airline suppliers committed to excellence in inflight entertainment and communications and the continual improvement of the airline passenger experience. For more information regarding the WAEA and the IFE and communications industry, please visit www.waea.org.