OREANDA-NEWS.   Mob dances, stilt walkers and a juggling clown took over the terminal of Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) this afternoon as members of the airport community joined together to celebrate the airport’s induction into TTG Travel Hall of Fame.

The accolade was presented to HKIA for winning TTG’s Best Airport award 10 times in a row. The TTG Travel Awards are voted on by tens of thousands of readers of TTG Travel Trade Publishing’s print and online publications each year.

During the celebration, Stanley Hui Hon-chung, Chief Executive Officer of Airport Authority Hong Kong, said, “This honour belongs to the 65,000-strong members of our airport community. Their professionalism and dedication are the key factors behind HKIA’s success through the years. Thanks to their efforts, we have fostered a culture of excellence – in customer service, safety, security, efficiency and environmental protection – each contributing to a pleasant and enjoyable travel experience for our passengers.

“We are particularly delighted to be receiving such a high honour this year, which marks HKIA’s 15th anniversary. It caps an amazing year when we have also won the ‘Best Airport in China’ award from Business Traveller China for the seventh time, and the ‘Air Cargo Award of Excellence’ from Air Cargo World for the eighth consecutive time,” Mr. Hui added.

Also attending the ceremony was Professor Anthony Cheung Bing-leung, Secretary for Transport and Housing, who said, “I would like to warmly congratulate everyone in the HKIA community.  Having won the ‘Best Airport’ in TTG Travel Awards for 10 consecutive times is no small achievement by any measure.  You have all done a superb job to enable HKIA to earn this honourable recognition from the industry.”

The trophies for the Best Smiling Customer Service Competition were also presented today in recognition of airport staff’s outstanding performance in service delivery. The awardees included representatives from airlines, passenger handling agents, retail shops, and catering and hospitality services. They were voted on by passengers for delivering quality service.

Dr Peter Lam Kin-ngok, Chairman of the Hong Kong Tourism Board, commended the joint efforts of the airport community in welcoming passengers from all over the world with what he called heartwarming, excellent service. “I am delighted that the HKIA team continues to raise the bar for service excellence, setting a very good example for our tourism industry. The thoughtful service and friendly gestures, be they big or small, not only make HKIA one of the best airports in the world, but also leave a lasting positive impression of Hong Kong on visitors’ minds,” he said.

The Best Smiling Customer Service Competition was part of a series of activities called the “Smiles at the Airport” campaign, which was launched last month to foster a passenger service-focused culture at HKIA. Other activities have included workshops on service excellence, which were attended by over 400 frontline employees, a slogan competition for airport staff, and a “Smiles at the Airport” Photo Competition for passengers.

To share the celebration with passengers and airport staff, a party was held at HKIA following today’s event. During the party, senior management of the airport community turned themselves into food cart attendants and served front-line colleagues with popcorn and cotton candy as a gesture of appreciation for their hard work and dedication. The airport also hosted a staff appreciation party at the terminal in the evening.