Qatar Airways to increase Mumbai frequency and launch flights to Hyderabad and Kochi

A commercial agreement was signed in Mumbai recently allowing Qatar Airways to operate to two new destinations in India and increase the frequency of its flight to Mumbai.

The agreement followed successful talks a delegation led by Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer, Akbar Al Baker had with Indian Civil Aviation authorities in Mumbai last week.

Chief Executive Officer of Qatar Airways said: "The new agreement helps Qatar Airways to offer passengers to India a better choice of destinations and increased frequencies." Starting October 27, Qatar Airways will fly six times a week to Mumbai. The airline, Qatar's national carrier, operates 4 flights a week to Mumbai at present. "The raised frequency will allow passengers to fly to India's commercial hub more often and there has been demand for more seats in this sector for a long time now," Mr. Akbar Al Baker said. Qatar Airways will launch direct flights to Hyderabad, another major city in south-central India, from November 21. The airline will fly the modern Airbus A 320 and Airbus A300 aircraft in this route.

From March 1 next year, Qatar's national carrier will be flying three times a week to Kochi, a major industrial and economic hub in the southern part of the country. The Kochi flights will be part of the airline's summer schedule. Qatar Airways will operate an Airbus A 300 and two Airbus A 320 aircraft in this route as well.

With the raising of the Mumbai frequency and the launching of services to two new destinations, the number of Qatar Airways flights to Indian destinations will go up to 19. The airline now operates a daily service to Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of the south Indian state of Kerala.

"This makes Qatar Airways, the preferred choice for passengers in the Qatar-India sector," Mr. Akbar Al Baker said. Qatar Airways has embarked on an ambitious programme to double the strength of its fleet by 2004 and raise the number of its destinations to over 50 in another two years.

The airline also successfully operates subsidies like Qatar Aviation Services, Qatar Airways Holidays, Qatar Duty Free, Qatar Distribution Company and the Qatar Air Catering Company to provide better services to its customers.