Qatar Airways to expand China services

Qatar Airways has revealed it intends to launch flights to the western Chinese city of Chongqing on November 28. Operating three-times-a-week, the non-stop service from the airline’s hub in Doha will take the carrier’s capacity to China up to 28 flights a week.The airline already operates daily non-stop flights from Doha to Hong Kong, Shanghai and Guangzhou and four-flights-a-week to Beijing. The new Chongqing services will be operated with an Airbus A330 in a two-class Business and Economy configuration.With a population of just over 30 million people, Chongqing has a large industrial catchment area and is a prime example of Qatar Airways placing strategic importance into emerging cities around the world.Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport is one of the biggest airports in western China serving a large domestic market with limited international flights. Global access is typically via Hong Kong, Beijing or Shanghai.Announcing the new route, Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker said: “China is clearly one of the world’s most important countries on the international stage, being a pacesetter in manufacturing and helping transform the global economic landscape.”It is this dynamism of a country that we at Qatar Airways have been monitoring closely and delighted to be part of China’s burgeoning economic growth. With four routes in China already well established, we look forward to adding Chongqing as our fifth gateway by the end of the year.”