Chengdu, China: Qatar Airways further expanded its operations in China with the launch of scheduled flights to Chengdu, the airline’s sixth destination to China.
Flight QR884 arrived at Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport to a water salute, following its non-stop journey from the airline’s operational hub in Doha.
“Qatar Airways saw an immense potential to operate in Chengdu, which is set to play a critical role in the next wave of economic development in Western China,” Akbar Al Baker, Qatar Airways’ Chief Executive Officer, said.
“It’s hardly a surprise, therefore, that nearly half of the world’s Fortune 500 companies have opened offices in the city, and that Chengdu is aiming to become China’s fastest growing aviation hub.”
The new Chengdu flights represent the significance of China’s growing economy on a global scale. Significant industries in Chengdu include electronics and information; machinery, particularly automotive and aerospace parts; medicine; food and tobacco processing; metallurgy; and petroleum.
Chengdu is also home to the world’s most sought after panda sanctuary which is also a key tourist selling point emphasised by Al Baker during a press conference with journalists.
“The opening of Chengdu shows our commitment to a vibrant and flourishing economy in the country’s next key economic and transportation hub. We remember fondly in 2011 when we launched Chongqing, offering the first non-stop route from Western China to the Middle East,” he said.
In the coming months, Qatar Airways plans to launch flights to Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) on September 18, Ta’if (Saudi Arabia) on October 2, Clark International Airport (Philippines) on October 27 and Philadelphia (USA) on April 2, 2014.
Factbox:
- Flight QR884 from Doha to Chengdu operates three times a week: Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays departing from Doha at 0200.
- Total flying time is 7 hours and 30 minutes.
-Flight QR885 from Chengdu to Doha operates three times a week: Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays departing from Chengdu at 01:00.
- The Chengdu route is operated with an Airbus A330 in a two-class configuration of up to 248 seats in Economy and 36 in Business Class.
- The new flight which operates three times a week joins Qatar Airways’ five other flights to China which include Beijing which operates daily, Shanghai (daily), Guangzhou (three times a week), Chongqing (three times a week) and Hong Kong (twice daily)
- The total of all flights from Qatar to China amounts to 41 per week
- Chengdu becomes the 130th destination in Qatar Airways global network
