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Norwegian wins ‘Best Low-Cost Carrier in Europe’ at the 2019 Passenger Choice Awards™

Press release -

Norwegian wins ‘Best Low-Cost Carrier in Europe’ at the 2019 Passenger Choice Awards™

Norwegian has been named ‘Best Best Low-Cost Carrier in Europe’ at the prestigious 2019 Passenger Choice Awards™. The APEX Passenger Choice Awards represent one of the highest accolades in the industry as winners are directly voted for by passengers and take into account factors such as seat comfort, cabin service, food and beverage, entertainment, and Wi-Fi.

Norwegian was the first airline to offer passengers free in-flight Wi-Fi on all European flights in 2011. The airline became the first to introduce live television over the skies of Europe in 2015 and in late 2018 it took delivery of its first Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner equipped with inflight Wi-Fi. In 2019 Norwegian became the first low-cost airline to offer customers free Wi-Fi for the full duration of intercontinental flights. Customers can choose the service that suits their requirements between a completely free package to a premium service allowing the streaming of video and other multimedia content.

Bjorn Kjos, Chief Executive Officer at Norwegian said: “It is truly an honour to receive such recognition from our passengers who value not only the excellent service, product and network that Norwegian offers but also the benefits such as free Wi-Fi that put us ahead of the competition. We would like to thank everybody who voted for us and for choosing to fly Norwegian. We will continue to innovate and invest in our passenger journey to provide an industry leading benchmark for others to follow.”

The APEX Passenger Choice Awards are based on passenger feedback gathered through APEX’s partnership with TripIt® from Concur®, the world’s highest-rated travel-organizing app. Using a five-star scale, more than one million flights were rated by passengers across nearly 500 airlines from around the world between 1 July 2017 and 31 June 2018. First, passengers rated their overall flight experience from one to five stars. On the same screen, passengers were given the opportunity to provide anonymous ratings in five subcategories: seat comfort, cabin service, food and beverage, entertainment, and Wi-Fi. The single screen rating allows airline passengers to easily rate their flight in less than 15 seconds. The Passenger Choice Awards were independently certified by a professional external auditing company hired by APEX.

Norwegian was one of the world’s most awarded low-cost airlines in 2018 taking home Most Fuel-Efficient Airline on Transatlantic Routes by the ICCT; World’s Best Low-Cost Long-Haul Airline for the fourth consecutive year and Europe’s Best Low-Cost Airline for the sixth consecutive year by Skytrax; Value Airline of the Year by Air Transport World Favourite Budget Airline by Global Travel Magazine; Best Wi-Fi in Europe and Best Overall Passenger Experience Low Cost Carrier Europe at the Passenger Choice Awards; Airline Programme of the Year Europe and Africa at the Freddie Awards in recognition of the airline’s customer loyalty programme – Norwegian reward; and Europe’s Leading Low-Cost Airline 2018 at the World Travel Awards.

The airline operates a young and therefore more environmentally friendly aircraft fleet with an average age of just 3.8 years. The International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) has voted Norwegian the most fuel-efficient airline on Transatlantic routes for two consecutive years which further demonstrates the airline’s commitment to reducing carbon emissions.

Norwegian is the world's fifth largest low-cost airline operating 500 routes to 150 destinations in Europe, North Africa, Middle East, Thailand, the U.S and South America. In 2018 the airline carried more than 37 million passengers.

Topics


Norwegian in the UK and Ireland:

  • Norwegian carries almost 6 million UK passengers each year from London Gatwick, Edinburgh and Manchester Airports to 30 destinations worldwide
  • Norwegian is the third largest airline at London Gatwick, with 4.6 million yearly passengers, and with more than 1,000 UK-based pilots and cabin crew
  • In 2014, Norwegian introduced the UK’s first low-cost, long haul flights to the U.S. - the airline now flies to 12 U.S destinations, Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro from London Gatwick
  • In 2017, Norwegian also launched affordable transatlantic flights from Edinburgh, Dublin, Cork and Shannon to the US East Coast, using the brand new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft
  • Norwegian is the only airline to offer free inflight WiFi on UK flights to more than 30 European destinations
  • The airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleets in the world with an average age of 3.8 years, including next-generation Boeing 787 Dreamliner, Boeing 737 MAX and Boeing 737-800s
  • Norwegian has been voted ‘Europe’s best low-cost carrier’ by passengers for six consecutive years at SkyTrax World Airline Awards from 2013-2018, along with being awarded the ‘World's best low-cost long-haul airline’ in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018
  • Norwegian Reward is the airline's free to join award-winning loyalty programme offering members CashPoints and Rewards that reduce the cost of Norwegian flights

Contacts

For journalists only

For journalists only

Press contact Norwegian Press Office +47 815 11 816
Marketing/sponsorhip requests: marketing@norwegian.com

Marketing/sponsorhip requests: marketing@norwegian.com

Press contact Marketing/sponsorship requests: marketing@norwegian.com

Norwegian.com

The Norwegian group is a leading Nordic aviation company, headquartered at Fornebu outside Oslo, Norway. The company has over 8,200 employees and owns two of the prominent airlines in the Nordics: Norwegian Air Shuttle and Widerøe’s Flyveselskap. Widerøe was acquired by Norwegian in 2024, aiming to facilitate seamless air travel across the two airline’s networks.

Norwegian Air Shuttle, the largest Norwegian airline with around 4,700 employees, operates an extensive route network connecting Nordic countries to key European destinations. In 2023, Norwegian carried over 20 million passengers and maintained a fleet of 87 Boeing 737-800 and 737 MAX 8 aircraft.

Widerøe’s Flyveselskap, Norway’s oldest airline, is Scandinavia’s largest regional carrier. The airline has more than 3,500 employees. Mainly operating the short-runway airports in rural Norway, Widerøe operates several state contract routes (PSO routes) in addition to its own commercial network. In 2023, the airline had 3.3 million passengers and a fleet of 48 aircraft, including 45 Bombardier Dash 8’s and three Embraer E190-E2's. Widerøe Ground Handling provides ground handling services at 41 Norwegian airports.

The Norwegian group has sustainability as a key priority and has committed to significantly reducing carbon emissions from its operations. Among numerous initiatives, the most noteworthy is the investment in production and use of fossil-free aviation fuel (SAF). Norwegian strives to become the sustainable choice for its passengers, actively contributing to the transformation of the aviation industry.

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