PHILADELPHIA, USA -- Philadelphia's Mayor Michael Nutter and senior officials held a high-level meeting last week with Qatar Airways Chief Executive His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, along with a high-level delegation from the airline, to discuss new trade, business and investment opportunities with Philadelphia.
As the first new international carrier to launch a service to Philadelphia in more than 10 years, Qatar Airways, a member of the oneworld Alliance, began daily scheduled passenger flights between Philadelphia International Airport and Doha International Airport last week.
During the courtesy visit to City Hall, Al Baker said that the airline planned to bring new opportunities to the city of Philadelphia by investing in the community and helping boost trade, tourism and business links between the State of Qatar and Philadelphia.
"Qatar Airways is honoured to serve the city of Philadelphia both in the air and on the ground," commented Al Baker afterwards. “Mayor Nutter has taken great strides to make Philadelphia a truly global city and Qatar Airways is proud to offer an additional boost to the local economy, helping to generate new jobs and create a substantial economic impact.”
Philadelphia is the airline’s fifth gateway in the United States and features a unique morning route, their earliest North American departure, which will allow American business and leisure travellers to access new connections, via Doha, to Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
"Qatar Airways looks forward to creating a lasting bond between the cities of Philadelphia and Doha,” added Al Baker. “There is an immeasurable opportunity for cultural exchange between the people of these two great cities and we expect this new route will serve as a strong conduit for trade and commerce, via our award-winning World’s Best Business Class.”
“We are pleased to bring the city of Philadelphia into our global community. Qatar Airways is in the business of bringing the world together, and thanks to the hard work of many here in Philadelphia, today we are that much closer to our goal. This launch has been a great success for both my country and my airline and we look forward to expanding our Five-star service throughout North America.”
Having spoken at last Wednesday’s launch ceremony, Mayor Nutter expressed his enthusiasm for the new partnership between Qatar Airways and Philadelphia, along with the airline’s plans to bring new jobs income, and an estimated 27,000 new visitors a year to the city. He also pointed to the unique advantages of the Philadelphia-Doha route and highlighted Philadelphia International as the preferred hub for east coast travellers, as opposed to “others” he chose not to mention by name.
Qatar Airways offers travellers from Philadelphia an exciting network of destinations to fly to, including cities across the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific via its Doha hub. The airline operates a modern fleet of 131 aircraft to 137 destinations globally, including destinations in Europe and South America.
In addition to Philadelphia, Qatar Airways' US footprint includes daily non-stop flights between Doha and New York, Houston, Chicago and Washington, DC.
Over the next few months, the network will grow further with the additions of Larnaca, Cyprus (April 29, 2014), Istanbul Sabiha Gökçen Airport, Turkey (May 22, 2014), Edinburgh, Scotland (May 28, 2014), Miami, USA (June 10, 2014), Haneda, Japan (June 18, 2014), Dallas/Fort Worth, USA (July 1, 2014) and Djibouti (July 27).
The DOHA – PHILADELPHIA Daily Schedule
Depart Doha: QR727 at 01:05 hrs, arrive in Philadelphia at 0755 hrs
Depart Philadelphia: QR728 at 10:30 hrs, arrive Doha at 06:10 hrs following day
For Images: https://www.flickr.com/photos/qatarairways/sets/72157643575021863/
Notes to Editors:
Qatar Airways is the national carrier of the State of Qatar. Currently undergoing rapid expansion, Qatar Airways is one of the fastest growing airlines operating one of the youngest fleets in the world. Now in its 17th year of operations, Qatar Airways has a modern fleet of 131 aircraft flying to 137 key business and leisure destinations across six continents.
On October 30, 2013, Qatar Airways joined the oneworld Alliance, becoming the first Gulf carrier to join a global airline alliance, enabling its customers to benefit from almost 1,000 airports in more than 150 countries, with 14,000 daily departures.
Award-winning carrier Qatar Airways was presented with three honours at the annual Skytrax 2013 World Airline Awards held during the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget, France, last June. The airline was awarded World’s Best Business Class, World’s Best Business Class Lounge and, for the second consecutive year, Best Airline Staff Service in the Middle East.
During the 2013 Dubai Air Show the airline placed orders for more than 60 new aircraft – a mixture of Boeing 777X and Airbus A330 Freighters. In total the airline more than 280 aircraft on order worth more than US $50 billion. The airline will move into its new hub and home, Hamad International Airport, from 2014. For more information, visit www.qatarairways.com.
For further information contact:
Qatar Airways Group, Corporate Communications Department
Tel: +974 44302072, Fax: +974 44302069
E-mail: qrmedia@qatarairways.com.qa
Website: www.qatarairways.com