The Middle East's top three airlines witnessed a significant growth in first and business class passenger volumes on routes between Europe and Asia Pacific between 2014 and 2015,a new study revealed.

According to a study by leading travel bookings agent Amadeus, first class passenger volumes for Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways on the top 10 Origins & Destinations between Europe and Asia Pacific increased 67 per cent, whilst business class traffic increased by 47 per cent.

The growth in premium classes was complemented by healthy overall growth, with a 7 per cent increase in passenger volumes across all cabin classes for these routes.

Airports in the Middle East also noticed a shift in traveller habits as passenger traffic for flights between Europe and APAC going through Doha, Abu Dhabi and Dubai increased by 8 per cent.
 
Amadeus also highlighted the 10 most popular routes from Europe to Asia Pacific in 2015, with Frankfurt to Bangkok topping the chart, followed by London to Bangkok, then London to Delhi.

Bangkok was overall the most popular destination, with five of the top 10 routes concluding there.

Gianni Pisanello, ‎Strategic Marketing director, Airline Distribution at Amadeus, said: “Travellers, especially premium passengers, want the freedom to shop for travel where they want and how they want. Airlines are responding to their customers’ needs by making their comprehensive offering available consistently across sales channels. This helps build and nurture customer relationships and is very much in line with Emirates’, Qatar Airways’ and Etihad Airways’ commitment to customer service excellence.”
 
The top ten most popular Origins & Destinations between Europe and APAC
1. Frankfurt - Bangkok
2. London - Bangkok
3. London - Delhi
4. London - Mumbai
5. Paris - Tokyo
6. Paris - Seoul
7. Munich - Bangkok
8. London - Hong Kong
9. Amsterdam - Bangkok
10. Paris - Bangkok.      - TradeArabia News Service