Qatar Airways receives on average a new aircraft every 15 days, with 250 aircraft including the Dreamliner 787, above, still on order. Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
Qatar Airways receives on average a new aircraft every 15 days, with 250 aircraft including the Dreamliner 787, above, still on order. Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
Qatar Airways receives on average a new aircraft every 15 days, with 250 aircraft including the Dreamliner 787, above, still on order. Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg
Qatar Airways receives on average a new aircraft every 15 days, with 250 aircraft including the Dreamliner 787, above, still on order. Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg

Qatar punches above its weight


  • English
  • Arabic

The outsized, upstart airline reflects its national roots with a global clout widely exceeding what seems possible from a country of 300,000 citizens. With western carriers reeling under recession, the skies still look clear over Doha.

In less than two decades of operation, Qatar Airways has often seemed the perfect metaphor for its home state: young, energetic and ambitious, with an international presence far larger than seems possible for a country with just 300,000 citizens.

In 2010 and 2011, as international commentators were waking up to tiny Qatar's massive foreign policy, the state's national air carrier was posting a record year. The world airline market had been depressed since the global financial crisis, but Qatar Airways turned a profit of US$205 million (Dh752.97m) in the fiscal year that ended on March 31,2011.

These days, the relationship between Qatar and its air carrier looks more complementary than parallel. Qatar Airways has become one of the country's most effective - if indirect - diplomatic tools, helping to transform Doha from a remote, dusty capital into a commercial hub for everything from pharmaceuticals to tourism.

"The airline illustrates the increasing global role Qatar seeks to play," says Hassan Al Ibrahim, the co-founder of Fikra, a Qatari think tank. "In a way, Qatar Airways shows how Qatar's soft power grew far beyond its physical borders."

For the first dozen years of its operations, the 50 per cent state-owned carrier grew like a child of the same age - measurably expanding each year with new routes, aircraft and services. By the time the carrier hit the 10-year mark, it had about 3,600 employees.

Since the airline hit its teenage years, however, its growth spurt has had the frenetic charm of a child who outgrows his shoes faster than they can be replaced.

Halfway through this year, Qatar Airways had 14,000 employees.

As of 2010, 98 per cent of its workers were expatriates, and at the company's headquarters near the airport in Doha, new recruits are hired so quickly that the ministry of interior has set up a shop on the first floor just to process visas.

Qatar Airways carried 14.3 million passengers last year to 118 destinations. Next year it expects 17 million.

Like any transformative product, the success of Qatar Airways - and its two UAE-based competitors, Etihad and Emirates - has been disruptive.

At a moment when western carriers are digging out from a mountain of fixed costs, Qatar Airways piled them on, adding aircraft and personnel. The airline has opened new routes, bought up landing slots, and taken on hundreds of thousands of tonnes of the global cargo market.

"The Middle Eastern carriers, as a whole, are being very aggressive in pursuing new routes and expanding cargo services," says Jon Ross, editor of the trade publication Air Cargo World. "They will continue this approach despite the worldwide economic malaise and will continue to gain more market share."

In part, external factors set the stage for the airline's rapid take-off.

"It's fairly simple why they have been so well-placed," said Fadi Majdalani, a partner and air-transport analyst at Booz & Company.

"The Gulf countries have a fantastic geographic location. Their cities are very well placed to ensure that you could have an adequate connection time to cities around the world."

Location alone, however, cannot explain the success. Among the most affected competitors have been other regional airlines such as Tunisair and Middle East Airlines, which have found themselves upstaged by the young fleet of Arabian Gulf-based carriers.

Qatar Airways' massive investments have grabbed the attention of industry professionals. The Doha airline has acted like a counter-cyclical bet, growing even as the global economy grinds slowly along.

"The Middle East is one of Boeing's most important markets across the world," said Marty Bentrott, Boeing's vice president of sales for the Middle East, Russia and Central Asia, who sees regional demand for 2,370 aeroplanes, worth $470 billion, between this year and 2031.

Qatar Airways receives, on average, a new aircraft every 15 days, with some 250 still on order, the company's chief executive, Akbar Al Baker, said.

So great is the demand that aircraft manufacturers are starting to tailor their production lines. The Boeing 787, due to join Qatar's fleet this year, "is an example of an airplane built with our customers and their customers in mind", says Mr Bentrott.

Meanwhile, Qatar Airways' expanding destinations have quite literally put Doha on the map for global travellers.

The carrier plans to launch new routes about once a month for the rest of this year, and has been tapping into routes that are only sparsely serviced, such as Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Baku in Azerbaijan.

Qatar Airways bills itself as a luxury carrier, but much of its growth is built on serving every manner of customer, not just elite. Sub-Saharan Africa is a case in point.

"It's a business decision. They see a lot of traffic in and out of Africa, and they don't believe that African airlines themselves will be able to ramp up quickly," said Mr Majdalani.

For African destinations such as Lagos or Dar es Salaam, Qatar Airways transforms business decisions. A few years ago, Europe was the most easily accessible destination for African travellers. Now, through Doha, Asia is also just one layover away - encouraging a trend towards Asian investment in Africa.

There are, of course, growing pains for Qatar Airways as it fits into its new shoes. This month, Mr Al Bakersaid the company turned a net loss in 2011-12 because of rising fuel costs.

Infrastructure and local human resources take more time to build and are still playing catch-up, industry professionals say.

A new Doha airport, for example, is more than a year behind schedule after what the airline claims were several disagreements with and unsatisfactory work from contractors. For now, the airline's hub relies on a cumbersome web of buses to ferry passengers from a too-small terminal to the waiting aircraft.

Most of those who travel aboard Qatar Airways will also never see Doha beyond the airport walls, since tourism in the small state is still minimal.

But even if they grumble about the old airport, more and more passengers are coming through Doha for reasons that are more simple than poetic.

"It's certainly cleaner than other carriers," said Maria, one satisfied customer who travels to Lebanon on Qatar Airways with her husband, Ihab. "Well, it's the world's five-star airline."

Dubai Bling season three

Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed 

Rating: 1/5

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

North Pole stats

Distance covered: 160km

Temperature: -40°C

Weight of equipment: 45kg

Altitude (metres above sea level): 0

Terrain: Ice rock

South Pole stats

Distance covered: 130km

Temperature: -50°C

Weight of equipment: 50kg

Altitude (metres above sea level): 3,300

Terrain: Flat ice
 

Dr Afridi's warning signs of digital addiction

Spending an excessive amount of time on the phone.

Neglecting personal, social, or academic responsibilities.

Losing interest in other activities or hobbies that were once enjoyed.

Having withdrawal symptoms like feeling anxious, restless, or upset when the technology is not available.

Experiencing sleep disturbances or changes in sleep patterns.

What are the guidelines?

Under 18 months: Avoid screen time altogether, except for video chatting with family.

Aged 18-24 months: If screens are introduced, it should be high-quality content watched with a caregiver to help the child understand what they are seeing.

Aged 2-5 years: Limit to one-hour per day of high-quality programming, with co-viewing whenever possible.

Aged 6-12 years: Set consistent limits on screen time to ensure it does not interfere with sleep, physical activity, or social interactions.

Teenagers: Encourage a balanced approach – screens should not replace sleep, exercise, or face-to-face socialisation.

Source: American Paediatric Association
MATCH INFO

Osasuna 1 Real Madrid 4
Osasuna: García (14')
Real Madrid: Isco (33'), Ramos (38'), Vázquez (84'), Jovic (90' 2)

Australia tour of Pakistan

March 4-8: First Test, Rawalpindi  

March 12-16: Second Test, Karachi 

March 21-25: Third Test, Lahore

March 29: First ODI, Rawalpindi

March 31: Second ODI, Rawalpindi

April 2: Third ODI, Rawalpindi

April 5: T20I, Rawalpindi

THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick

Hometown: Cologne, Germany

Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)

Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes

Favourite hobby: Football

Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk

The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Power: 268bhp / 536bhp
Torque: 343Nm / 686Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
On sale: Later this year
Our legal advisor

Ahmad El Sayed is Senior Associate at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.

Experience: Commercial litigator who has assisted clients with overseas judgments before UAE courts. His specialties are cases related to banking, real estate, shareholder disputes, company liquidations and criminal matters as well as employment related litigation. 

Education: Sagesse University, Beirut, Lebanon, in 2005.

STAY%2C%20DAUGHTER
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAuthor%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EYasmin%20Azad%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESwift%20Press%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAvailable%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENow%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20SupplyVan%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELaunch%20year%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202017%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20employees%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2029%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20MRO%20and%20e-commerce%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFunding%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Seed%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Company%C2%A0profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EHayvn%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2018%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EChristopher%20Flinos%2C%20Ahmed%20Ismail%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAbu%20Dhabi%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Efinancial%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Eundisclosed%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESize%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2044%20employees%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Eseries%20B%20in%20the%20second%20half%20of%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EHilbert%20Capital%2C%20Red%20Acre%20Ventures%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
EA Sports FC 25
PAKISTAN SQUAD

Pakistan - Sarfraz Ahmed (captain), Azhar Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Hafeez, Haris Sohail, Faheem Ashraf, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Amir, Hasan Ali, Aamer Yamin, Rumman Raees.

6 UNDERGROUND

Director: Michael Bay

Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Adria Arjona, Dave Franco

2.5 / 5 stars

How to avoid crypto fraud
  • Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
  • Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
  • Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
  • Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
  • Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
  • Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
  • Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
Fireball

Moscow claimed it hit the largest military fuel storage facility in Ukraine, triggering a huge fireball at the site.

A plume of black smoke rose from a fuel storage facility in the village of Kalynivka outside Kyiv on Friday after Russia said it had destroyed the military site with Kalibr cruise missiles.

"On the evening of March 24, Kalibr high-precision sea-based cruise missiles attacked a fuel base in the village of Kalynivka near Kyiv," the Russian defence ministry said in a statement.

Ukraine confirmed the strike, saying the village some 40 kilometres south-west of Kyiv was targeted.

SHALASH%20THE%20IRAQI
%3Cp%3EAuthor%3A%20Shalash%3Cbr%3ETranslator%3A%20Luke%20Leafgren%3Cbr%3EPages%3A%20352%3Cbr%3EPublisher%3A%20And%20Other%20Stories%3C%2Fp%3E%0A