Qatar Airways will be able to increase its frequencies to various destinations after it gets traffic rights once owned by regional airline Gulf Air.
The process will begin once the formalities relating to Qatar's pullout from Gulf Air have been completed, Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar Al Baker said. He said Gulf Air had secured traffic rights in its capacity as Qatar's national airline and these rights would naturally be awarded to Qatar Airways, the country's new national carrier and flag bearer. He added that the airline would fly to Baghdad when it received the permission to do so. Qatar Airways already has an office in Baghdad which will be opened soon. The airline last month also launched a thrice weekly flight to the Yemeni capital Sanaa. One of the flights will be operated direct from Abu Dhabi while the other two will fly out of Doha. Qatar Airways took delivery of its second Airbus A330-200 at the Farnborough Air Show in the UK. The new aircraft will be operated on European routes, including Frankfurt and Milan. It has a configuration of 12 first class, 18 business class and 208 economy class seats. The carrier received its first A330-200 in May this year.