Manama: Qatar Airways will begin daily flights to Brazil and Argentina on June 24, the airline has said. The flights will mark the airline's first operations to South America.
The two brand new Boeing 777-200 Long Range aircraft acquired in the last three months will be deployed on the two South American routes, to the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo and Argentine capital Buenos Aires this summer.
"Flight QR921 will depart Doha International Airport daily at 0740 hrs, arriving in Sao Paulo at 1600 hrs. The flight continues onto Buenos Aires, arriving at 2005 hrs. Return flight QR922 departs daily from Buenos Aires at 2305 hrs to Sao Paulo before continuing its journey at 0310 hrs the next day, arriving in Doha at 2310 hrs," the airline said.
Akbar Al Baker, Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer, said that adding destinations in South America to the network was a great achievement for the young airline.
"We have experienced incredible expansion over the years and by soon adding Sao Paulo and Buenos Aires to our growing network, we can proudly say Qatar Airways is a truly international airline," he was quoted as saying by Qatar News Agency.
Flights to Sao Paulo will be operated daily non-stop from the airline's hub in Doha. The aircraft will then continue onto Buenos Aires. Qatar Airways will be the only Five Star ranked airline operating daily to South America with the launch of the new flights.
The aircraft features a total of 259 seats, 42 seats in Business Class in a 2-2-2 configuration and 217 seats in Economy in a 3-3-3 layout.
The aircraft is designed to operate on ultra-long routes of up to 17 hours non-stop. It already serves Houston and Melbourne, non-stop from Doha.
"We have seven new routes lined up during the first six months of 2010, and the airline plans to open up even more routes within the next 12 months as our growth strategy continues to evolve," Al Baker said.
"The airline is receiving on average one new aircraft a month, allowing us to concentrate on enhancing our existing services, as well as opening up new routes. It is a very exciting time for Qatar Airways."
Qatar Airways recently launched daily flights to the southern Indian city of Bangalore. Copenhagen joins the network from March 30. Flights to Ankara begin on April 5 while Tokyo starts on April 26 and Barcelona on June 7.
