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| Founded | November 22, 1993 | |||
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| Commenced operations | January 20, 1994 | |||
| Hubs | Doha International Airport | |||
| Frequent-flyer program | Qatar Airways Privilege Club - Qmiles | |||
| Airport lounge | Qatar Premium Terminal | |||
| Subsidiaries |
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| Fleet size | 102 incl. cargo | |||
| Destinations | 109 | |||
| Company slogan | World's 5-star airline | |||
| Parent company | Government of Qatar | |||
| Headquarters | Qatar Airways Towers Doha, Qatar |
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| Key people | Akbar Al Baker (CEO) | |||
| Website | www.qatarairways.com | |||
Qatar Airways Company Q.C.S.C. (Arabic: القطرية, Qatariyah), operating as Qatar Airways, is the flag carrier of Qatar. Headquartered in the Qatar Airways Tower in Doha,[1] it operates a hub-and-spoke network, linking over 100 international destinations from its base in Doha, using a fleet of over 100 aircraft.
Qatar Airways operates services across Africa, Central Asia, Europe, Far East, South Asia, Middle East, North America, South America and Oceania, and was named Airline of the Year 2011 at the Skytrax World Airline Awards.[2]
Qatar Airways is currently undergoing a major expansion and is one of the fastest growing airlines in the world.
The airline employs more than 20,000 people. 14,000 employees work for the airline directly while the other 6,000 work in the airline's subsidiaries.[3]
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Qatar Airways was established on November 22, 1993. The airline started its operations on January 20, 1994 using a wet-leased Boeing 767-200ER from Kuwait Airways. It was originally owned by private members of the royal family of Qatar. However, it was re-launched in 1997, under a new management team. Currently, the government of Qatar holds 50% stake of Qatar Airways and the rest is held by private investors.
On March 24, 1997, Qatar Airways received their first Airbus A300-600 aircraft on lease from AWAS in new Qatar Airways livery. On February 1, 1999, they took delivery of their first new Airbus A320 aircraft (A7-ABR) on lease from Singapore Aircraft Leasing Enterprise (SALE).
On May 2002, the Government of Qatar withdrew from Gulf Air. At that time fast-growing Qatar Airways had 21 aircraft.[4]
On May 10, 2003, Qatar Airways took delivery of their first Airbus A330-200 aircraft (A7-ACA). On January 11, 2004, at the Dubai Airshow, Qatar Airways ordered Airbus A380s and A340-600s.[5] Their first A340 was delivered on September 8, 2006.
On June 18, 2007 Qatar Airways became the launch customer for the Airbus A350 when it ordered 80 aircraft worth US$16 billion, at the Paris Air Show.[6] On June 27, 2007, Qatar Airways made its first flight to the US when it began service to New York.[7]
On November 11, 2007, Qatar Airways ordered 60 Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners and 32 Boeing 777s.[8] On November 29, 2007, the airline's first Boeing 777-300ER arrived at Doha.[9]
On February 3, 2009, the airline took delivery of its first Boeing 777-200LR. The "LR" stands for "Long Range."[10]
On June 15, 2009, at the Paris Air Show, Qatar Airways ordered 20 Airbus A320 and 4 Airbus A321 aircraft worth $1.9bn.[11]
On October 12 2009, Qatar Airways completed the world’s first commercial passenger flight powered by a fuel made from natural gas, [12] and on December 1, 2009 Qatar Airways' first scheduled flight to Australia arrived in Melbourne.
On May 18, 2010, the airline put its first Boeing 777F (A7-BFA) into service, with a flight from Doha to Amsterdam. The aircraft had been delivered on May 14, 2010.[13][14]
Qatar Airways is expanding. The airline has launched 22 new destinations since 2010, with 9 more destinations announced. These new destinations which Qatar Airways has already launched are Ankara, Aleppo, Bangalore, Barcelona, Brussels, Bucharest, Budapest, Buenos Aires, Copenhagen, Hanoi, Montreal, Nice, Phuket, São Paulo, Shiraz, Kolkata, Medina, Oslo, Sofia, Stuttgart and Venice, and Tokyo. Qatar Airways will also launch Baku, Tblisi, and Entebbe during 2011. These new routes will bring the number of destinations Qatar Airways serves from 85 to 110 worldwide.
On June 22, 2011, Qatar Airways was recognized as the World's Best Airline at the 2011 World Airline Awards, in a ceremony held at the French Air and Space Museum as part of the 2011 Paris Air Show.[15]
In November 2011 at the Dubai Airshow, the airline announced an order of 55 Airbus planes: 50 A320NEO and 5 A380, in addition to 2 Boeing 777 freighters.[16]
Qatar Airways has many divisions including: Qatar Aircraft Catering Company, Doha International Airport, Qatar Airways Holidays, United Media Int, Qatar Duty Free, Qatar Aviation Services, Qatar Distribution Company and Qatar Executive.
Qatar Airways Cargo, the airlines freight branch, has ordered three Boeing 777F. The first Boeing 777F was delivered to the airline in on May 14, 2010, and has freight facilities able to handle 750,000 tonnes of cargo per annum during its first development phase. The Boeing 777F will be used primarily on Qatar Airways' Far East and European routes and will be supplemented by Airbus A300-600F freighters that operate on regional routes feeding the airline's hub.
Dedicated cargo flights to Cairo International Airport were launched in June 2009 complementing the passenger services already operated.[17]
On August 18, 2010, the airline launched its first US dedicated cargo service from its hub in Doha to Chicago with a stop-over in Amsterdam, Netherlands with Boeing 777 freighter aircraft.[18]
Qatar Executive is a corporate jet subsidiary of Qatar Airways. The jets are painted in a different paint scheme than the rest of Qatar Airways' fleet, sporting a white fuselage with a slightly smaller Oryx painted in the airline's traditional colors of burgundy and gray.
The Royal fleet of Qatar Emiri Flight also are painted in full Qatar Airways livery, however they are not part of the airline or Qatar Executive.
On 12 October 2009, a Qatar Airways Airbus A340-600 conducted the world's first commercial passenger flight using a mixture of kerosene and synthetic Gas-to-Liquid (GTL) fuel, produced from natural gas, on its flight from London's Gatwick Airport to Doha.[19] The experiment's purpose was to demonstrate the viability of jet fuel made from a source not subject to rapidly fluctuating oil prices. In addition, positioning natural gas in particular as an alternative source of jet fuel is in the interests of the Qatari government; Qatar is the world's leading exporter of natural gas. However, some experts believe that GTL fuel is likely to remain a marginal choice due to an expensive production process.[20]
Qatar Airways cabin crew was voted Best Cabin Crew in the Middle East for the seventh consecutive year at the 2009 Skytrax airline awards. Qatar Airways has over 120 nationalities as cabin crew who offer a consistent 5 star service to its customers (passengers)
As of June 8, 2011, Qatar Airways serves 101 [21] destinations and Qatar Airways Cargo serves 19 (including 15 destinations served by Qatar Airways also) destinations in 55 countries across Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, South America, and Oceania from its hub at Doha International Airport, making it one of only a small number of airlines to fly to all six inhabited continents.
Qatar Airways has codeshare agreements with the following airlines.[22] * indicate as Star Alliance:
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As of August 2011, the Qatar Airways fleet consists of the following aircraft (excluding Qatar Executive):
| Aircraft | In Fleet | Orders | Options | Passengers | Notes | |||
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| F | J | Y | Total | |||||
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2 |
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25 | 8 |
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Widescreen AVOD/ Mainscreen |
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0 | 50 |
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12 |
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Widescreen AVOD / Mainscreen |
| Airbus A330-200 | 16 | — | — | 12 | 24 | 192 | 228 | PTV AVOD |
| 8 | 24 | 200 | 232 | |||||
| — | 24 | 236 | 260 | |||||
| — | 24 | 248 | 272 | |||||
| Airbus A330-300 | 13 | — | — | 12 | 24 | 223 | 249 | PTV AVOD |
| — | 30 | 275 | 305 | |||||
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4 |
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9 | —[25] |
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16 | 14 [26][27] |
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| Qatar Airways Cargo Fleet | ||||||||
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3 |
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3 | 5 [27] [29] |
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| Total | 103 | 192 | 33 | |||||
Qatar Airways formerly operated the following aircraft:[30]
| Aircraft | Introduced | Retired | Notes |
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| Airbus A300-600R | 1997 | — | 7 operated in total. 3 still in service. |
| Airbus A310-200 | 1994 | 1995 | 2 leased from Airbus Leasing |
| Boeing 727-200Adv | 1995 | 1999 | First aircraft type purchased by airline. |
| Boeing 747SR | 1995 | 2009 | 2 purchased from Boeing, ex-ANA |
Though not affilited with the airline, some VIP aircraft belonging to the Royal family and Government are also painted in Qatar Airways livery, these include the Airbus A310-300, A319CJ, A320P, A330-200, A340-200, A340-500, Bombardier BD-100, BD-700 and a Qatar Air Force Boeing C17, the fleet also operate using the airlines codes. It is expected that two Boeing 747-8BBJ on order will also be in the airlines colours.
Qatar Airways offers First Class passengers over 6.5 feet of legroom and seats that fold into flat beds with feather duvets. First Class seats are equipped with massage functions and an entertainment system. Qatar Airways plans to eliminate First Class cabins from existing A340 aircraft, as well as new aircraft deliveries, except the A380s.[31] Al-Baker has announced that all upcoming 777 deliveries will be in standard two-class configuration.
Qatar Airways offers Business Class passengers fully flat horizontal beds in a 2-2-2 configuration on board its Boeing 777 aircraft. On other long-haul aircraft, business class seats recline up to 172 degrees, with massage functions. Customers can choose fine wines and champagnes, including vintages exclusive to Qatar Airways.
Qatar Airways has introduced new Business Class seats on board its newly delivered A320 aircraft with IFE seat-back PTVs in every seat. It will introduce the new seats in each upcoming new A320 aircraft, as well as retrofitting 4 existing A321 and 2 A319LR aircraft.
Qatar Airways will introduce a whole new business class cabin starting from 2011. Details as to what the new cabin will feature have not been made public.[31]
Qatar Airways Economy Class was named best in the world in the 2009 and 2010 Skytrax Awards. Qatar Airways offers Economy Class passengers a seat pitch of up to 34 inches. Economy class passengers on A330/A340 aircraft are offered individual seat-back TV screens. Passengers on Boeing 777 aircraft are offered touch-screen TV's.
Qatar Airways has taken delivery of several A320 family aircraft so far with individual seat-back personal televisions in every seat in economy class. The IFE is equipped with the same Thales entertainment system as used in the widebody fleet. A further four A321s and the two A319LRs will be equipped with the new IFE, as well as new upcoming A320 family aircraft deliveries.
Qatar Airways' in-flight entertainment system is called Oryx Entertainment. With the exception of some Airbus A320 family aircraft, all aircraft have personal seat-back television screens. Some Airbus A330s and the remaining Airbus A320 family aircraft are fitted with main screen entertainment. Qatar is updating Airbus A320 family aircraft to seat-back AVOD and removing main screen entertainment from some Airbus A330s.
Qatar Airways' Privilege Club loyalty programme has reciprocal agreements with Asiana Airlines' Asiana Club, bmi's Diamond Club, Lufthansa's Miles and More, Middle East Airlines' Cedar Miles, All Nippon Airways' Mileage Club, United Airlines' Mileage Plus, and US Airways' Dividend Miles frequent flyer schemes. Privilege Club also has tie-ups with international hotel and car rental companies.
The Premium Terminal, Qatar Airways' dedicated terminal for First and Business Class passengers, opened at Doha International Airport in Winter 2006. Built in nine months at a cost of US$90million, the 10,000sqm Premium Terminal features facilities include check-in, duty-free shopping, conference rooms, nursery and play area, spa treatment rooms, sauna, jacuzzi and restaurants. The business class lounge has undergone renovation that has increased the seating capacity by more than 80%. CEO Akabar Al Bakar is also leading the development of the New Doha International Airport, which opens in phases from 2011.
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