Qatar Airways CEO lauds airline’s European growth

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker has spelled out the strategic importance of the airline’s ongoing expansion in Europe, following the carrier’s latest route launch to Brussels. The launch of scheduled flights to the Belgian capital marked the Gulf carrier’s third new European route to open in as many weeks. Last month, Qatar Airways began operating flights to both Bucharest and Budapest from Doha. “Qatar Airways has in recent months concentrated on growing its European network by boosting capacity and frequency, as well as establishing new routes to underserved cities,” said Akbar. “The importance of flying to cities across Europe cannot be understated. It remains a highly important part of the world where we have seen other airlines withdraw capacity. By adding Brussels to our network, we’ve opened up a myriad of connections through our hub in Doha to the Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific regions.” The Doha - Brussels route has been launched with five-flights-a-week operated by a wide body Airbus A330, featuring up to 30 seats in Business Class and up to 275 seats in Economy. “Much has been said in Europe about the expansion of Gulf airlines in Europe,” added Akbar. “But we are operating in an environment where there is demand, and where customers want greater choice and want an alternative experience to the services offered by legacy carriers.”