British Airways and Ryanair have both performed poorly in a survey by consumer watchdog Which?.

BA has slipped from mid table among short-haul airlines to third from the bottom.

Based on criteria such as food and drink, seat comfort and overall value for money, it achieved a customer score of just 52%, compared to 67% last year.

But it was Ryanair that came bottom of the table, alongside BA's sister airline Vueling, both scoring just 45%.

Top of the table were Jet2 (76%) and Norwegian (76%), both awarded four stars by passengers for their customer service.

The number one spot went to Channel Islands' airline Auringny Air Services (80%), which achieved four stars for its boarding process, cabin environment and customer service.

Meanwhile, Singapore Airlines finished on top for the second year running among long-haul airlines.

It got full marks in several categories and an overall customer score of 88%, finishing significantly ahead of Emirates (82%) and Qatar Airways (78%) in second and third place.

At the bottom of the table were United Airlines and American Airlines with customer scores of 39% and 46% respectively.

Neither airline scored more than two stars for anything other than cabin environment.

BA also found itself rated the third worst carrier on long-haul, falling behind Thomson and Thomas Cook for the first time in the Which? survey.

The survey was carried out in September and October 2017 and asked passengers to rate airlines on their recent flying experiences.

Which? recorded 11,625 member experiences, of which 9,623 were for economy flights. Only airlines rated by at least 30 members were included in the tables.

Passenger views were combined with CAA punctuality data from August to July 2017.

Responding to the survey, BA said: "British Airways is a premium airline committed to customer choice. We offer customers the biggest network from London's most central airports, a loyalty programme with huge benefits and the best punctuality record of the three big short-haul operators from the capital. We also give our growing numbers of customers a wide choice of fares and services.

"In 2018, our investments for customers will include 20 new aircraft, even more new routes, upgraded cabin interiors, significantly improved catering in long-haul economy and the roll-out of our new Club catering and bedding services across our long-haul network."

Ryanair chief marketing officer Kenny Jacobs said: "This survey of 9,000 Which? members is unrepresentative and worthless , during a year when Ryanair is the world's largest international airline (129m customers) and is also the world's fastest growing airline (up 9m customers in 2017).

"We have apologised for the deeply regretted flight cancellations and winter schedule changes, and the disruption they caused to less than 1% of our customers, we have worked hard to re-accommodate or refund all customers and met our EU261 obligations in full.

"We have responded quickly to repair the pilot rostering failure, eliminate further cancellations and we are determined to invest the time, money and manpower to ensure that it never recurs.

"The Which? Survey includes no standalone rating price, which is the single most important factor for UK consumers when it comes to airline choice. Our average fare is just €39 and has fallen further this year.

"Ryanair.com is the most visited airline website in the UK, so demand from UK consumers to book and fly with Ryanair has never been higher.

"Ryanair also receives customer feedback in real time, with Rate My Trip on the Ryanair app. Rate My Trip has received over 475,000 responses this year and recorded 92% satisfaction rate.

"This Which? survey doesn't reflect real passenger choices. Real customers cannot get enough of Ryanair's low fares and our Always Getting Better customer service."

Courtesy of Travelmole