Emirates has been named Best Overall Airline in the Middle East at the 2026 APEX Best in Airline Awards, with the Dubai-based carrier recognised for its customer experience across several areas of the passenger journey. The award was presented at a ceremony in Dublin on June 11 and was based on passenger feedback.
APEX Best Awards
According to Emirates, passengers rated the airline highly across five categories: seat comfort, cabin service, food and beverage, in-flight entertainment and connectivity. The annual APEX (Airline Passenger Experience) awards use feedback collected from travellers, with more than one million flights across over 600 airlines evaluated for the 2026 awards programme. The feedback is collected through an app called TripIT from Concur, where passengers can rate flights using a five-star point system.
The recognition comes as Emirates continues investing in its onboard product, including fleet refurbishments and new seating across different cabin classes. Upcoming upgrades will include new Economy Class seats on selected aircraft from October.
Focus on onboard experience
The inflight entertainment system, ICE, was among the areas praised, with the airline now offering more than 6,500 channels of content across movies, TV, box sets, news and live sports. Emirates also said that its Starlink Wi-Fi rollout is continuing across the fleet, with it already being recognised in the passenger ratings. Starlink is an ultrafast, complimentary Wi-Fi for passengers onboard Emirates flights.
Emirates said the award reflects its ongoing focus on customer experience across all cabin classes. The airline highlighted investments in seating, dining and service as well as training programmes for cabin crew, helping it secure the title this year.
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