São Paulo – Qatar Airways is going to invest US$ 40 billion in the purchase of 173 new aircraft up until 2019. The Qatari airline also intends to expand its operations in South America and may have additional flights to São Paulo. The information was supplied by the company’s CEO, Akbar Al Baker, who gave a press conference this Thursday (2nd) in the city of São Paulo.
Presently, the company operates 91 aircraft to 95 different destinations, in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia, Oceania and the Americas. The new jets to be purchased include 80 Airbus A350s, 60 Boeing 787s, 10 Boeing 777s, 17 Airbus A320s, five Airbus A380-800s and one Bombardier Global 5000.
Since June this year, Qatar Airways has been operating daily flights between São Paulo and Doha. The flights leaving from Brazil also makes an extension Buenos Aires, Argentina. "We are operating with an occupancy rate of 74%. As soon as we reach 89%, we are going to request permission for increasing the frequency," said Baker regarding operations in Brazil. "This flight is very well received by the public because we are the only five-star company of the Middle East to fly in the region," he claimed.
The executive, however, declined to reveal what other cities are on the company’s plans. "We are going to increase our destinations in South America, but we will only announce them six months earlier," he stated.
Baker also claimed that Qatar Airways is negotiating with the Brazilian airline TAM to sign a codeshare agreement (a cooperation agreement by which an airline transports passengers whose tickets have been issued by another airline). "We expect [the agreement] to be completed soon," he said.
He also talked about the building of the new Doha International Airport, which will be managed by Qatar Airways. The first phase is scheduled to be completed in 2012, after which the airport will have capacity for 24 million passengers per year, a figure that should increase to 50 million once the project is fully completed, in 2020.
"It will be the world’s largest, most sophisticated and most eco-friendly airport," said the executive. The new airport, whose project has a cost of US$ 14.5 billion, is going to replace the Qatari capital’s current airport, which will be completely demolished, and its area will be destined for the construction of new buildings.
The new airport will have a 463,000 square-metre terminal and will also include a hangar with capacity for 13 aircraft at once.
Fast expansion
Qatar Airways was founded in early 1994. At first, the company operated with only four aircraft in regional flights. After Al Baker was appointed CEO, in 1997, the company witnessed a fast expansion and is now considered the third best airline in the world, according to the rating of the Skytrax site.
In 2010 alone, Qatar Airways began operating 10 new routes, including the flight to São Paulo. Next year, the company will inaugurate at least six new destinations, among them the city of Aleppo, in Syria.
The airline employs 13,000 people, and counts on another 6,000 in its subsidiaries.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
