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Home | Qatar Airways - Press Releases September 2013

Qatar Airways Press Releases September 2013

QATAR AIRWAYS TO JOIN ONEWORLD ON 30 OCTOBER 2013

09 Sep 2013

Qatar Airways will become a full member of oneworld® with effect from Wednesday 30October 2013, adding one of the world’s fastest growing and most highly rated airlines to the world’s leading quality airline alliance.

One of just seven carriers worldwide rated five-star by the Skytrax airline quality agency and the organisation’s Airline of the Year 2011 and 2012 and runner-up 2013, Qatar Airways is the only one of the “Gulf Big Three” carriers slated to join any of the global airline alliances.

It received clearance to board oneworld after successfully completing a thorough review of its readiness, conducted by British Airways, which is sponsoring Qatar Airways’ entry into the alliance, with oneworld’s central team.

Qatar Airways completes its oneworld implementation programme just one year after receiving its invitation to join, announced at a press conference in the alliance’s New York home in October 2012. This will make its induction into oneworld one of the fastest in the alliance’s history. Normally it takes around 18 months for any airline to be readied to enter any alliance.
Qatar Airways’ addition to oneworld will come shortly before the airline moves into its new home base, Hamad International Airport, which has been designed to strengthen Doha’s position as a premium global hub, with an eventual capacity for 50 million passengers a year.

From its first flights on Wednesday, 30 October, Qatar Airways will offer oneworld’s full range of services and benefits.

From then, the 3 million members of Qatar Airways’ Privilege Club loyalty programme will enjoy frequent flyer privileges whenever they fly with any oneworld member airline, which include leading brands from each global region – airberlin, American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific Airways, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, LAN Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Royal Jordanian, S7 Airlines and some 30 affiliated airlines. This includes earning and redeeming Qmiles for awards and earning Qpoints for tier status when flying with all these airlines.

Privilege Club Platinum cardholders will have Emerald status in the oneworld programme. Privilege Club Gold will be equivalent to oneworld Sapphire and Privilege Club Silver will be oneworld Ruby.

From 30 October, Privilege Club Platinum and Gold members will be able to access 550 airport lounges worldwide offered by oneworld member airlines when they fly with one of the alliance’s carriers. Qatar Airways’ First and Business Class passengers will also be able to use oneworld partner airline lounges.

Also from 30 October, the 130 million members of the established oneworld airlines’ frequent flyer programmes will be able to earn and redeem awards and tier status points and receive all other oneworld benefits on Qatar Airways.

Qatar Airways is already participating in Global Explorer, the round-the-world fare offered by all oneworld members and various airlines that are not part of the alliance. When it becomes part of oneworld, Qatar Airways’ network – serving 130 destinations in 70 countries across the Middle East, Europe, Africa, North and South America, Asia and Australasia – will be covered by the full and extensive range of oneworld fare and sales products.

More than 20 of its destinations and five countries – Ethiopia, Iran, Rwanda, Serbia and Tanzania – will be new to the oneworld map. More significantly, Qatar Airways will substantially strengthen the alliance’s customer offering by providing superior routing alternatives across many hundreds of city pairs. For example, passengers flying between Asia and Southern Europe or between Asia and Africa will now have convenient one-stop connections not previously available within the oneworld network.

Its implementation, making oneworld the leading alliance in the Middle East region, comes as the group undergoes the biggest expansion in its history with:
• The addition of Malaysia Airlines, one of this industry’s most frequent award winners, six months ago, further strengthening oneworld’s position in South East Asia, one of the fastest growing regions for air travel demand.
• The switch in the second quarter of next year to oneworld from the Star Alliance by TAM, the leading airline in Latin America’s leading economy, Brazil, along with its Paraguayan affiliate, following the addition to oneworld on 1 October 2013 of the newest member of the LAN group, LAN Colombia, solidifying oneworld’s position as the leading alliance in Latin America.
• The introduction early next year of SriLankan Airlines, as the first airline from the Indian subcontinent to join any global alliance, which, with Qatar Airways, will make oneworld the leading alliance in the region.

In addition, US Airways proposes to switch from Star to oneworld as part of its planned merger with American Airlines, subject to necessary approvals.
With Qatar Airways and the other airlines lining up to join, oneworld will:
• Serve almost a thousand airports in more than 150 countries, with 14,000 daily departures.
• Carry 480 million passengers a year on a combined fleet of almost 3,500 aircraft.
• Generate US$ 140 billion annual revenues

Qatar Airways’ oneworld implementation programme has represented one of the most extensive projects in the airline’s 16-year history, with working groups covering some 20 streams of activity. Projects are nearing completion to bring its various internal processes and procedures into line with the alliance’s requirements, and extensive employee training and communications programmes are now underway at Qatar Airways and the alliance’s established members, to ensure they are ready to provide oneworld’s customer services and benefits across the expanded alliance from 30 October.

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker said: “In Qatar Airways’ relatively short history, we have quickly established a reputation for innovation, quality and excellence in everything we do. We are pleased to build on that by becoming the only major airline from the Gulf to date to be joining any of the global airline alliances. We are proud to entering the best of them, in oneworld – and to be doing so in record quick time. We very much look forward to flying alongside some of the best airlines in the world from 30 October, bringing the heightened benefits offered by oneworld to our customers.”
oneworld CEO Bruce Ashby said: “Quality has always been the hallmark of oneworld, so we are pleased to be adding to our alliance another of the world’s highest quality airlines, in Qatar Airways. oneworld aims to be the first choice alliance for frequent international travelers the world over. Qatar Airways will significantly improve our connectivity between many of the destinations that are most important to those customers. We look forward to welcoming it and its customers on board the world’s leading airline alliance.”

End.

QATAR AIRWAYS ANNOUNCES FREQUENCY INCREASES

Eastern Europe Sees Most Added Flights

02 Sep 2013

DOHA, Qatar - Qatar Airways has announced frequency increases to destinations in Eastern Europe, Middle East and Asia Pacific in preparation for the busy winter season.

Strong passenger demand and additional aircraft inducted to the fleet has prompted the Doha-based airline to add frequencies to its popular and growing routes. Highlights of the frequency increases are:

Ankara (Turkey)               4 flights a week from 3 beginning Sep 18
Belgrade (Serbia)            4 flights a week from 3 beginning Sep 18
Bucharest (Romania) 5 flights a week from 4 beginning Sep 17
Dubai (UAE)                   91 flights a week from 77 (13 daily flights) from Aug 1
Islamabad (Pakistan)    7 flights a week from 4 (daily flights) beginning Oct 27
Jakarta (Indonesia)       14 flights a week from 11 (double-daily flights) beginning Sep 1
Manama (Bahrain)         49 flights a week from 47 (7 times a day) beginning Sep 15
Moscow (Russia)          12 flights a week from 10 beginning Sep 3
Sofia (Bulgaria)               5 flights a week from 4 beginning Sep 17
Yangon (Myanmar)         7 flights a week from 3 (daily flights beginning Oct 27

The numerous increases in frequency on these routes will provide business and leisure passengers travelling to and from these destinations with more flexibility and greater choice to connect onto Qatar Airways’ extensive global network covering Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, North America and South America.

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker said that the increases will ensure that these popular routes grow from strength to strength.

“At Qatar Airways, we remain committed to opening up access to destinations that have great market potential. As we continue to expand our network and receive more aircraft, we will keep looking at opportunities to add capacity to our existing network and further strengthen our brand presence around the world,” said Al Baker.

On August 1st Qatar Airways increased its frequency on its very popular Doha – Dubai route with two additional daily flights, taking its capacity up to 13 services per day. Dubai has the highest frequency in the airline’s route network; this popular Gulf destination is served 91 times a week.

Flights to the Gulf region will see another increase as services to Manama in Bahrain will rise by seven to a total of 49 flights each week.

Expansion highlights also include one additional weekly flight to key European routes Ankara, Belgrade, Bucharest and Sofia and flights to Moscow will grow from 10 to 12 weekly flights.

Yangon, which was re-launched last October with three flights a week, will be upgraded to a daily non-stop service.
Another popular far-eastern route Jakarta will see increase in capacity from 11 to 14 flights a week, resulting in double-daily flights to the Indonesian capital city.

Qatar Airways will also be strengthening its commitment to Pakistan; the recent frequency increases to Karachi, Lahore and Peshawar will be supplemented by Islamabad moving from four weekly services to a daily service.

To make bookings or check schedules, visit www.qatarairways.com

Qatar Airways has seen rapid growth in just 16 years of operations, currently flying a modern fleet of 129 aircraft to 129 key business and leisure destinations worldwide.

Qatar Airways has so far launched seven destinations this year – Gassim (Saudi Arabia), Najaf (Iraq), Phnom Penh (Cambodia), Chicago (USA), Salalah (Oman), Basra (Iraq) and Sulaymaniyah (Iraq). Over the next few weeks and months, the network will grow further with Chengdu, China (September 3), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (September 18), Clark International Airport, Philippines (October 27) and Philadelphia, USA (2 April 2014).

End.

QATAR AIRWAYS PARTNERS WITH BRITISH AIRWAYS ON FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAMME

08 Sep 2013

DOHA, Qatar, 8 September 2013 – Qatar Airways has announced an immediate partnership with British Airways between the airlines’ frequent flyer programmes. Qatar Airways Privilege Club members and British Airways Executive Club members are now able to earn miles, and can begin redeeming miles as of 1st October 2013 on each other’s flights.

Privilege Club is Qatar Airways way of saying thank you to its customers for choosing to fly with the airline. Members enjoy a range of exclusive privileges and benefits designed to make travelling even more rewarding.

“The benefit partnering with British Airways brings to our customers is the added opportunity to earn Qmiles,” said Akbar Al Baker, Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer. Privilege Club members may redeem their Qmiles for award tickets, excess baggage or merchandise through Qatar Duty Free or Oryx Galleria in Doha.

“This Frequent Flyer Programme partnership also gives British Airways customers an opportunity to attain credit for destinations throughout the entire Qatar Airways network,” continued Al Baker.

“Passengers of both airlines traveling to and from the UK, Africa, Australia and Asia now have more flexibility and frequency when they route trip through Doha as Qatar Airways flies five flights daily to London Heathrow Airport.”

Qatar Airways Privilege Club offers members exciting ways to redeem Qmiles. With flight awards to over 300 destinations served by Qatar Airways and its airline partners, passengers can also use Qmiles as a convenient means of payment for shopping at Qatar Duty Free located at the departures, arrivals and the Premium Terminal of Doha International Airport and Oryx Galleria, Doha, Qatar.

British Airways Executive Club members can collect “Avios” when booking flights or shopping with the airline’s partners. Avios can be used for flights, hotels and “members only” special offers and promotions.