Tag Archives: Hamad International Airport

Qatar Airways operates the first revenue flight of the new Airbus A350-900

Qatar Airways (Doha) today (January 15), as planned, inaugurated and operated the first revenue flight of the new Airbus A350-900. Flight QR 067 departed from Doha’s new Hamad International Airport this morning at 0810 local time bound for Frankfurt. The flight arrived at FRA at 1206 CET local time.

More to come on the arrival in Frankfurt.

In other news, Qatar Airways has announced the launch of new direct flights from Doha to Sofia from March, a destination currently served by the airline via Bucharest.

Frequencies are also increasing from Doha to Ankara, which will be served by a six weekly flight connection instead of five from March 1, while capacity will increase to Zagreb with an additional direct flight per week, increasing the frequency from four to five direct flights weekly.

Photo: Qatar Airways. The inaugural pushback from Doha today.

Video:

Video: Sam Chui was on the inaugural flight:

Qatar Airways aircraft slide show:

Qatar Airways arrives in Dallas/Fort Worth

Qatar Airways (Doha) as planned, yesterday (July 1) commenced daily, nonstop services between Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and the newly unveiled Hamad International Airport (HIA) in Doha, Qatar. The new route increases Qatar Airways’ extensive global network to seven gateways within the United States and 144 destinations worldwide.

Dallas/Fort Worth becomes Qatar Airways second destination in Texas, representing the airline’s enduring commitment to the region. Along with Houston, Dallas/Fort Worth will serve as a crucial junction between Qatar Airways’ global network, via Doha, and other key destinations across the Southwestern USA, including Austin, San Antonio and Oklahoma City, through our oneworld alliance partners.

The new route flies daily between Dallas/Fort Worth and Doha, departing from Doha at 8:10 am (0810) and arriving into Dallas/Fort Worth at 3:35 pm (1535) the same day. Overnight service to Doha departs Dallas/Fort Worth at 8:00 pm (2000) and lands in Doha at 6:20 pm (1820) the following day. The route is operated with a Boeing 777-200 LR configured with 217 Economy Class seats and 42 Business Class seats.

Outbound passengers to Doha will enjoy fast, convenient connections to key destinations throughout the world, including Delhi, Beijing, Tokyo, Bangkok and Perth, via the world’s newest international hub, Hamad International Airport.

Officially commencing full operations on May 1, Hamad International Airport offers state-of-the-art facilities and is capable of handling over 360,000 flights and 30 million passengers annually, with a fluid capacity of 50 million passengers after full completion.

As one of the fastest growing airlines in the world, Dallas/Fort Worth represents Qatar Airways’ tenth new destination of 2014. The airline operates one of the youngest fleets in the sky and will be adding the highly anticipated Airbus A380s and A350s in the near future.

Copyright Photo: PRNewsFoto/Qatar Airways. The traditional water cannon salute was performed on the first arriving flight at DFW.

Qatar Airways:

Qatar Airways today starts full operations at the new Hamad International Airport in Doha

Qatar Airways (Doha) today (May 27) commenced full operations at its new state-of-the-art hub, Hamad International Airport (HIA), at 09:00 local time.

With the first Qatar Airways commercial flight QR 1113 from Bahrain landing at HIA at 09:10 local time, all operations for all airlines have now been transferred to HIA. The new airport adjacent to the old Doha International Airport.

Above: The first commercial flight of Qatar Airways touching down at Hamad International Airport, marking the commencing of full operations of the national airline at Doha’s new airport.

Above: His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, Chief Executive Officer of Qatar Airways during his meeting with the local media at Hamad International Airport.

“The moment we have all been building towards for many years arrived today as QR 1113 touched down, marking the historic start of our full operations at the world-class Hamad International Airport,” said Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker. “This is yet another milestone in the rich history of Qatar Airways, and one that will allow us to fully realise our ambitions, and to offer our passengers the very best of services, both in the air and on the ground.

“Qatar Airways will be able to offer an exceptional passenger experience, as HIA has been designed with passengers foremost in mind. The airport will also be able to accommodate the world’s largest aircraft, such as our much-anticipated Qatar Airways Airbus A380 which will commence operations to the UK in June and France in July.”

Passengers travelling on today’s historic day were greeted with roses, dates, coffee, chocolate and Qatari flags. They were also able to take advantage of the many new services available at Hamad International Airport, from the free Wi-Fi to play areas for children, multiple quiet areas to relax, and the amazing array of shopping and eating options. With more than 70 retail outlets offering an unprecedented selection of designer labels, high street fashion, electronics, gourmet foods and much more, Qatar Duty Free at HIA also has more than 30 cafes and restaurants with a sumptuous selection of global and local cuisine.

All passengers travelling via HIA are advised to arrive three hours before their flight, with check-in closing one hour before departure for Economy Class, and 45 minutes before departure for First and Business Class. e-Gates are already operational in both the departures and arrivals areas, offering holders of an e-Gate Card a swift journey through the new airport. Helpful HIA staff will also be readily available to assist at information desks and throughout the airport.

Google Maps. The new airport is located on the East coast of the peninsula, just 16 km from the center of Doha and 4 km from DIA. Due to an elaborate newly-built road infrastructure surrounding HIA, arrival time to the airport is around 25 minutes, depending on traffic. Qatar Airways’ passengers can travel to HIA via car, bus, taxi or limo services.

Qatar Airways:

Top Copyright Photo: Hamad International Airport. An aerial view of the new airport with the main terminal at the top center right. Downtown Doha is to the left in the upper-center center in the background. The new Emiri Terminal is located closest in the center-right area. Below: An interior photo of the main terminal (all other photos by Qatar Airways).

Hamad International Airport opens in Doha, Qatar for the first phase

Qatar’s new Hamad International Airport (HIA) (Doha) extended its jetways today to welcome arriving passengers for the first time to the world’s newest aviation hub. A press conference was held earlier today at the HIA passenger terminal to mark the soft launch of the airport. The event was attended by HE Mr. Jassim Saif Ahmed Al Sulaiti, Minister of Transport, members of the New Doha International Airport (NDIA) Steering Committee, guests and members of the press.

A Qatar Airways flight was the first to officially land on the East Runway. The flight carried the Minister of Transport, the board members of the Steering Committee of NDIA and other delegates and received a Water Salute by the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority Rescue Fire Fighting Services.

Starting today (May 1), ten carriers commenced operations out of the new passenger terminal at HIA, with the remaining carriers, including national carrier Qatar Airways, expected to move to the new airport by May 27, 2014.

HIA and Airport City (together comprising the NDIA project) span 29 square kilometers, 60% on land reclaimed from the Arabian Gulf. The project includes 100 buildings of various uses. The Passenger Terminal features a massive internal area of 600,000 square meters and has 3 concourses and 33 contact gates, which will subsequently be increased to five concourses and 65 contact gates, including eight for the A380, in the final build-out.

Once fully open, the terminal also features 16 lounges, 26 art installations, more than 100 F&B and retail outlets, a transit hotel, a swimming pool, a luxury spa, squash courts and a four-storey catering facility that is one of the largest in the world. The on-site public mosque can accommodate 500 worshippers at prayer time.

“The launch of the new airport represents the fulfilment of the longstanding vision of His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the Father Emir, which was brought to fruition by His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar,” said Al-Noaimi. “HIA will be a source of pride and joy for all people of Qatar for many decades to come. It will deliver a memorable experience to all passengers that will travel through its gates; an experience that reflects Qatar’s status and importance on the world travel and tourism map.”

Map: Hamad International Airport is adjacent to the current, being phased out Doha International Airport (DOH). The new airport was built on reclaimed land.

Qatar Airways is coming to Miami

Qatar Airways (Doha), not surprisingly, given its expanding relationship with American Airlines (Dallas/Fort Worth), is coming to Miami. The fast-growing carrier will add the Doha-Miami nonstop route on June 1, 2014 with Boeing 777-200 LRs. The route will operate initially four days a week according to the Miami Herald. This will open a lot of Asian one stop connections via Doha’s new Hamad International Airport for South Florida passengers.

The Doha route will be the longest passenger route from MIA at 6,6667 nautical miles, making it one of the longest air routes in the world.

Qatar Airways will join the Oneworld alliance on October 30, 2013.

Read the full article: CLICK HERE

Update: Qatar Airways made the news official on Monday, October 21 with this announcement:

Qatar Airways, the national carrier for Qatar, has announced Miami (IATA code: MIA) to be its sixth destination to the U.S. beginning on June 10, 2014. The airline will offer nonstop flights from its hub in Doha four-times per week aboard a Boeing 777.

Qatar Airways currently operates to Chicago (O’Hare), Houston (Bush Intercontinental), New York (JFK), and Washington D.C. (Dulles), in the U.S. and will add Philadelphia in April 2014. The airline will operate a Boeing 777-200 LR to Miami with a two-class configuration with 42 seats in Business and 217 seats in Economy.

Qatar Airways will begin operations to and from Miami (MIA) as per below schedule effective June 10, 2014:

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday

QR777 Departs DOH 08:40 hrs Arrives MIA 17:20 hrs Travel time: 15:40

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday

QR778 Departs MIA 21:15 hrs Arrives DOH 18:20 hrs +1 day Travel time: 14:20

Qatar Airways has seen rapid growth in just 16 years of operations, currently flying a modern fleet of 129 aircraft to 131 key business and leisure destinations across Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific and The Americas.

In 2013, Qatar Airways has launched ten destinations to date – Gassim (Saudi Arabia), Najaf (Iraq), Phnom Penh (Cambodia), Chicago (USA), Salalah (Oman), Basra (Iraq), Sulaymaniyah (Iraq), Chengdu (China), Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), and most recently Ta’if (Saudi Arabia).

Over the next few weeks and months, the network will grow further with Clark Manila International Airport, Philippines (October 28) and Philadelphia, USA (April 2, 2014).

Copyright Photo: Paul Denton/AirlinersGallery.com. Qatar Airways Boeing 777-2DZ LR A7-BBG (msn 36101) prepares to land at Johannesburg.

Qatar Airways:

Doha’s new Hamad International Airport opening is delayed

Hamad International Airport (Doha) is the future new home of Qatar Airways (Doha). The new airport, on reclaimed land adjacent to the old Doha International Airport, was due for a soft opening on April 1, 2013 with Qatar Airways making the ceremonial first landing. At the last moment, the opening was postponed. According to this report by The Peninsula, the new airport “did not meet the newly introduced safety and security requirements mandated by the Civil Defence Department.”

Read the full report: CLICK HERE

Map: Google Maps.

Air India Express to be one of the first airlines to open the new Hamad International Airport in Doha, Qatar

Air India Express (Kochi) will be one of 10 airlines that will open the new Hamad International Airport in Doha, Qatar on April 1 according to The Times of India. The opening will be a soft opening to gradually open the new airport. Qatar Airways (Doha) will not move to the adjacent new airport until the end of the year. Therefore for approximately nine months there will be two airports in Doha.

According to the report, the other airlines opening the new airport will include Air Arabia, Biman Bangladesh Airlines, Flydubai, Iran Air, Nepal Airlines, PIA-Pakistan International Airlines, RAK Airways, Syrian Air and Yemen Airways.

Read the full Times of India report: CLICK HERE

Read more about the new airport from HOK: CLICK HERE

Courtesy of HOK:

Top Copyright Photo: Paul Denton. Boeing 737-8HG WL VT-AYA (msn 36337) in the Ellora elephant statue tail motif arrives at nearby Dubai.

Air India Express (see all of the tails):