Best airlines in the world for flying economy class

SINGAPORE - Flying on economy class can conjure up unpleasant visions of tight seats, little leg room and noisy neighbours. Even if you can't control those factors, you can always select the best airlines for economy flights by their offerings of in-flight entertainment, dining services and punctuality.

News and entertainment site Business Insider has published in June the findings of the best 20 airlines for economy flights based on a study by Skytrax and Flightstats.com.

Singapore's full-service carrier, Singapore Airlines, has once again topped this listing for the second time running.

Business Insider said that the five-star airline, which was founded in 1947, has obtained perfect scores for cabin cleanliness and condition, in-flight entertainment, and service efficiency. Their wide variety of entertainment options and hot towels, said Business Insider, are just some of their perks and thoughtful gestures which got them crowned the number one spot, again.

Coming in a close second is Japan's largest carrier, All Nippon Airways. It stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Singapore Airlines on On-Time Performance of 83 points, but lost out on the In-flight Entertainment category.

An airline that was spotted at the fifth position was Malaysia Airlines, reported Business Insider. Despite the negative media attention the carrier has received for the disappearance of flight MH370, Business Insider said their decades' worth of "sterling service should not be discounted".

It also added that Malaysia Airlines has consistently impressed Skytrax reviewers with its in-flight experience, and even bagged a perfect score in service efficiency.

Almost half of the carriers in this ranking are from Asia, and also includes some lesser known airlines such as Khazak carrier, Air Astana, and South African Airways.

Find out which airlines can give you a first-class service on an economy price tag.

wjeanne@sph.com.sg