Turkish talks air travel trends

THE 2015 Turkish Airlines
Aviation Trends Index –
conducted among leisure
travellers globally, 1 029 of
whom were South African
– shows that 97% of South
African travellers consider
safety to be the main
priority when selecting an
airline.
“Due to the fact that
air travel has become an
integral part of holiday
planning for many leisure
travellers, it is essential
for airlines to understand
the preferences and key
trends among leisure
air travellers to remain
competitive,” says Kenan
Ince, Cape Town gm of
Turkish Airlines.
The index was conducted
in Germany, the UK, the
US, Japan, the UAE, South
Africa and Nigeria. “We
commissioned the survey
in several of the prominent
destinations in our network
to gauge comparative
trends on a global scale
and to gain key insights
into specific trends for the
various destinations.”
Additional insights
with regard to pre-flight
behaviour in SA included
a 76% preference for
all-inclusive travel
packages and low average
participation in frequent
flyer programmes at 32%.
The index also indicated
that 91% of SA travellers
opted to book flights
through online platforms
rather than using travel
agencies and 58% used
online comparative sites
when booking flights, says
Kenan.
He says results relating
to in-flight preferences
indicated that 96% of
South African air travellers
rated cleanliness of the
cabin and friendly
attentive staff as
paramount, while 92%
mentioned the importance
of sufficient seating space
in all cabins.