I fly a lot and having tried about 30 different airlines, it’s hard to go past Asian service - Singapore, Cathay, JAL/ANA, Asiana, Vietnam etc.
The ME guys are fine but they’re allowed to compete with various government subsidies. The unsung good airline of the region is Turkish.
No Euro carriers really stand out for mine unless it’s boutique like La Companie.
Qantas get a bad wrap - they’re not perfect but their product and service is still better than pretty much all US carriers and Joyce has the unenviable position of running a business that flies to/from the last bus stop (fuel costs) along with among the highest labour costs in the world. Sure he’s made mistakes but as usual his detractors wouldn’t have a clue what it takes to actually do the job and turn a profit. Would love to see them in the chair having a go. Hilarious. It’s a tough business with low margins and frequent shocks (think 9/11, Bali, recession, war and pandemics).
These days for the sake of keeping top tier loyalty status I’ll generally choose One World carriers as the small things like dedicated check-in, priority boarding, extra bag allowance, improved seating (exit rows, upgrades) and a little personal service ‘Welcome Back Mr. Dinkum, here’s an extra bottle of red for you’ take some of the pain out of the long haul.
Oh and despite what Boom and Virgin Galactic etc are trying to do, I don’t see supersonic or stratospheric flight an affordable regular thing for the punter in my lifetime and is likely 50+ years away if it ever happens - so enjoy the movies and Wi-Fi kids - you ain’t gettin’ to London or New York much quicker anytime soon.