The new North American services will be operated with Qatar Airways’ Boeing 777 freighters and will fly from the airline’s hub in Doha via Luxembourg.
Atlanta and Houston will be served with twice-weekly flights from November 2, while the Toronto weekly services will begin five days later on November 7. In North America, Qatar Airways currently operates dedicated freighters only to Chicago.
The carrier also flies daily non-stop passenger services to Houston, New York and Washington, together with thrice-weekly flights to Montreal, offering sufficient cargo space in the belly of the aircraft.
Meanwhile, Qatar Airways’ passenger services to Jeddah in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will be supplemented with a weekly cargo flight, effective October 30.
In addition, extra cargo flights will operate to Chicago, Colombo, Bahrain, Dammam, Hong Kong and Tehran from October 30.
Over the past few months, Qatar Airways Cargo has significantly ramped up its expansion with increased frequencies and the order for a further three Boeing 777 freighters. Recent frequency increases have been implemented to Kuwait, Bengaluru, Kozhikode and Hanoi.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker said that the airline’s dedicated cargo network was an extension of the airline’s strategy to develop its global air transport business.
“With the recent completion of our 35 per cent stake in Cargolux, Europe’s largest cargo airline, we have increased our focus on freighter operations, which ties seamlessly into the airline’s strategy to have as many connecting points across the globe from our Doha hub,” said Al Baker.
“We have identified tremendous route expansion opportunities around the world, including North America where the freighter market is huge.”
Qatar Airways Cargo currently has a fleet of three Airbus A300-600s and two Boeing 777 freighters.
The Boeing 777F aircraft has the longest range of any twin-engined freighter, and is based on the Boeing 777-200 Long Range aircraft, of which Qatar Airways has nine in its passenger fleet operating the airline’s ultra long-haul passenger routes to Houston, Melbourne, Montreal, Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires.
Qatar Airways will expand its passenger services to Entebbe in Uganda from November 2; and Chongqing, the airline’s fifth gateway in China, from November 28.
Flights to Baku and Tbilisi, the capitals of Azerbaijan and Georgia respectively, will be launched on February 1 next year. By 2013, Qatar Airways plans to serve more than 120 destinations worldwide with a fleet of over 120 aircraft. The airline currently has a fleet of 100 aircraft flying to over 100 destinations.
About Qatar Airways:
Qatar Airways has ordered 80 Airbus A350s, 24 Airbus A320 Family aircraft, 60 Boeing 787s and 40 Boeing 777s, with deliveries of the latter having started in November 2007. The carrier has aircraft orders for more than 200 jets worth over US$40 billion and is one of the customers of the twin-deck Airbus A380 ‘super jumbos’ with five on order and scheduled for delivery from 2012, by which time the New Doha International Airport would have opened. For more information, visit www.ndiaproject.com
About Qatar Airways Cargo:
Doha-based Qatar Airways Cargo provides cargo services to over 100 destinations worldwide using the cargo space available on the Qatar Airways passenger aircraft fleet as well as a dedicated network operated by its Airbus A300-600 and Boeing 777 freighter fleet. The airline’s cargo operation is spread across six continents and provides a global reach for customers.
Qatar Airways Cargo has dedicated staff and facilities to ensure all transships are processed in an efficient, seamless manner. Transship facilities are used for products requiring special attention like perishables, high value commodities and live animals. Its warehouse at Doha International Airport has the capacity to handle around 400,000 tons of cargo annually. For further information, log onto www.qatarairwayscargo.com.
For Further Information Contact:
Qatar Airways Corporate Communications Department
Tel: +974 4496956, Fax: +974 4620132
E-mail: qrmedia@qatarairways.com.qa
www.qatarairways.com