Ekali, 10 February 2022: This year’s awards ceremony for the Air Transport Awards took place next to the inaugural 2022 Air Transport Symposium with the participation of industry leaders.
The 2022 Air Transport Awards are in partnership with Hermes – Air Transport Organisation and ATN – Air Transport News.
Welcoming the participants, Dr Kostas Iatrou, President of the 2022 Air Transport Awards: “This year we celebrate the tenth anniversary of the awards. I am pleased that all these years we recognised the leaders, companies and organisations that contributed to the development of air transport”.
Dr Yiannis Paraschis, CEO, Athens International Airport said: “It is indeed with great honour that I accept this highly prestigious award (ATN Individual Award)! Having experienced for more than two years now a crisis of unprecedented scale and world-wide magnitude, it has become more than evident that “weathering the storm” is never an “one individual’s” business. This distinction acknowledges the firm commitment of a highly capable and dedicated team of professionals and it belongs, first and foremost, to the Athens International Airport staff and the total of 13,000 employees from 300 public and private sector operating entities, all members of the Athens airport community”.
Commenting on the ATN Corporate Award, Pegasus Airlines CEO Mehmet T. Nane said: “We are proud to be a part of this special event and to receive such an important award at the 2022 Air Transport Awards” and continued: “We left behind a busy and somewhat strenuous year, which we have spent in the shadow of the pandemic and economic difficulties. Despite all the challenges, 2021 was a year of recovery for our sector. As Pegasus Airlines, in 2022, we will continue to expand and renew our fleet with new generation, more environmentally friendly aircraft; to offer unique digital solutions so that our guests can ‘travel with minimum contact’; and to work tirelessly with the goal of becoming the greenest airline of our country and our region”.
Henrik Hololei, Director-General for Mobility and Transport, European Commission said: “It is a real pleasure to accept this year’s ATN International Organisation Award on behalf of the European Commission and especially on behalf of my colleagues in DG MOVE. We continue to face extremely challenging times and we all hope that the depth of the crisis is behind us. Looking ahead, the recovery will be used to further accelerate the green and digital transition of the European aviation sector. The European Commission and DG MOVE will continue support these efforts.”
Jeffrey Goh, CEO of Star Alliance said: “Star Alliance is truly honoured to be a repeat winner of the prestigious Alliance of the Year Award. Continued recognition of this nature is testament to our innovative spirit and our shared commitment in improving the customer experience. This award encourages us as we collectively emerge from the deepest crisis our industry has ever encountered.”
“In spite of the Covid-19 pandemic, we have managed to continue our operations at the same speed as before without any problems. Although we are a young organization, we have become the most resilient airport in the world through our dynamic structure, our infrastructure which is suitable for technological developments, and our work leading the aviation industry. We are delighted to have been awarded internationally two years in a row on behalf of Turkey, the award of “Airport of the Year“. Being distinguished for this valuable award for the second time is the biggest proof that we are succeeding with our iGA Istanbul Airport project.” said Kadri Samsunlu, CEO, iGA Istanbul Airport.
Adel Al Ali, Group Chief Executive Officer of Air Arabia said: “Winning the prestigious ‘Airline of the Year’ award reflects the success of everyone at team Air Arabia as well as our continued commitment to quality and operational excellence. Since Air Arabia first introduced the low-cost business model to the Middle East and North Africa region, we continue working towards achieving our goal of making air travel accessible to everyone. This recognition further inspires us to bring even more innovative services that continue to underpin our industry leadership position”
H.E. Harry Theoharis, former minister of Tourism of the Hellenic Republic said accepting the 2022 Hermes Award: “I am proud for the success of Greek tourism throughout the difficult period of the pandemic. It has been outcome of a collective effort by the private and public sectors, that was enhanced by modern and aesthetic advertising tourism campaigns. Solid foundations have been laid and the prospects of the Greek tourism’s future are highly positive for the benefit of the industry and our people”.
Jeff Poole, President, Hermes – Air Transport Organisation: “I am delighted to accept this very special award today following an extensive international career in the aerospace, aviation and tourism industries. I have been honoured and privileged to serve with and for many true professionals and great organisations. A Lifetime Achievement Award is always unique and special but this one is also very poignant as it is in memory of Katerina and George Iatrou, the wonderful parents of Dr Kostas Iatrou.”
Pieter Elbers, President & CEO, KLM: “I am truly honored to be awarded for the Leader of the Year Award at the 2022 Air Transport Awards. I would like to dedicate this award to all my KLM colleagues; they are the heart of KLM. This award is a great testimonial for the outstanding work and great resilience of all of them throughout these past two very tough Covid19 years. They remained (stayed) focused on what we do best: connect people, reunite families, strengthen business relationships and transport essential goods.”
Finally, Dr Kostas Iatrou was bestowed with the 2022 Keramianakis Award of Hellenic Aviation Society for his contribution to air transport.
In particular, the winners by category are as follows:
-ATN Individual Award: Dr Yiannis Paraschis, CEO, Athens International Airport
-ATN Corporate Award: Pegasus Airlines
-ATN International Organisation Award: European Commission
-Alliance of the Year: Star Alliance
-Airport of the Year: iGA Istanbul Airport
-Airline of the Year: Air Arabia
-Hermes Award: Harry Theoharis
-“Katerina & George Iatrou” Lifetime Achievement Award: Jeff Poole, President, Hermes – Air Transport Organisation
-Leader of the Year: Pieter Elbers, President & CEO, KLM
About Air Transport Awards
Air Transport Awards are the only international prizes that award all the main categories of the air transport industry.