The scheduled arrival in Doha this afternoon of an aviation masterpiece will mark yet another significant moment in the history of Qatar’s air travel industry.
The world’s biggest passenger jet is due to touch down at Hamad International Airport (HIA) following a five-hour flight from Airbus’ delivery factory in Hamburg.
National carrier Qatar Airways flies its maiden Airbus A380 into the capital city to a VIP welcome ceremony that also marks the first time a superjumbo has landed on Qatari soil.
The double-deck aircraft, with a capacity of 517 passengers across three travel classes, will provide passengers departing Doha with a different experience. New interiors, new seats and new twin level airport boarding bridges.
The sheer size of this monster plane dwarfs any aircraft in the carrier’s fleet. There will be more than 50% additional seats than the airline’s current largest wide-body, the 335-seat Boeing 777-300ER.
A crowd pleaser at international air shows for its awesome demonstration flights or simply its presence at airports around the world, the A380 has become a growing feature globally with more aircraft being inducted by additional airline customers on new routes of up to 16 hours non-stop.
The A380 graces financial hubs and capital cities: from New York , Los Angeles, London, Paris, Zurich, Frankfurt, Dubai and Johannesburg to Tokyo, Singapore, Seoul, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Beijing and Sydney to name a few.
There are 11 airlines flying more than 140 A380s around the world with the biggest share right here in the Gulf.
Neighbours Emirates operates over 50 A380s – almost one-third of the global number. Its order book stretches to a total of 140 double decker aircraft, fifty of which were confirmed at the Dubai Air Show last year.
At a book price of $414mn, the A380 is not every airline’s cup of tea.
The A380s were built principally with two things in mind: to serve high-density routes and slot-constrained airports. In other words, fly passengers on popular routes and to airports which have little or no room for expansion for additional flights. Bigger passenger aircraft are the answer, hence the arrival of the A380s.
Essentially ordered by the “big boys”, few airlines are making the aircraft part of their fleet. Only two dozen or so airline customers have opted for the plane. And virtually all A380 operators have gone for a three-class capacity of more than 500 seats.
Aside from Emirates, primary A380 operators today are Singapore Airlines, Qantas, Lufthansa and Air France. Others include British Airways, Malaysia Airlines, Thai International, Korean Air, China Southern Airlines and Asiana.
With Qatar Airways and Doha now added to the growing list of airports and airlines welcoming the A380, Hamad International will see more of these planes flying in and out of HIA over the next few months.
Qatar Airways is set to take delivery of a further three A380s by the end of the year. In total, the airline has a confirmed order book for 10 A380s to be delivered over two years, but more are said to be on the cards.
With regional rival Etihad due to take delivery of the first of its 10 A380s by the end of 2014, all three key Gulf players will soon have their fleets supported by the superjumbo.
And London Heathrow will once again prove the launch long-haul gateway for an A380 in fresh colours.
Qatar Airways will fly the national flag on the A380 to Britain’s premier airport on one of its six daily flights from Doha, making it the carrier’s fifth different aircraft-type to fly each day on the high demand route from next month.
Etihad has announced its maiden A380 will also fly to London from its Abu Dhabi hub.
Meanwhile, Emirates operates all of its five daily Dubai–London Heathrow flights with an A380 that represents over 2,500 available seats each way.
The A380s are iconic planes that help airports generate more retail revenue due largely to the volume of passengers being carried, and enhance the image of not just the airline provider, but of the country it operates from.
For Qatar, it will mark yet another milestone in the country’s aviation industry – and potentially the third in the space of just seven months.
Coming almost two years since the Boeing 787 Dreamliner made its Middle East debut courtesy of the national airline, the A380 is set to arrive on our shores today.
Hamad International, which opened for business in May to become Qatar’s new gateway to the world, will put the airport’s facilities to the test at a very different level. Handling over 500 passengers for a single flight is no mean feat.
The third milestone of the year is just months away with the world’s first Airbus A350 scheduled for delivery by the end of 2014. Qatar Airways is the launch customer of this mid-to-long range aircraft with 80 ordered in a record-breaking deal struck at the Paris Air Show nine years ago.
Aviation milestones are there to be achieved and Qatar has certainly had a successful history of reaching high points in an industry that is relatively new to the nation compared with rest of the world.
The world’s first terminal dedicated to premium passengers began operations in 2006; the region’s first business jet operation run by a scheduled airline started in 2009; and the region’s first airline to achieve a unique Five Star global ranking for high service standards.
So why has Qatar Airways taken delivery of this engineering marvel seven years after launch customer Singapore Airlines took to the skies with the world’s first A380 commercial flight? Has Qatar Airways been late in the game?
Despite delivery delays, it all comes down to capacity constraints. The old Doha International Airport had been expanded while Hamad International was under construction waiting to take over.
All developments took place in a period when the country’s aviation infrastructure was under intense pressure desperately trying to cope with the tremendous growth in passenger numbers fuelled by Qatar Airways’ expansion. In just 17 years of operations, the carrier has matured to a global network of 144 destinations served by 134 aircraft.
New aircraft joining the fleet at an average rate of one every 12 days and a new destination added monthly have clearly shown the strains on an infrastructure bursting at its seams.
The departure of Doha International and arrival of Hamad International have come at a time when the A380 can really come to the fore with deployment on routes that matter the most.
Aside from capacity constraints at airports, it is high passenger demand cities which the airline will want to serve and meet the needs of the travelling public. Restricted aviation agreements between some countries limit the number of seats that airlines are permitted to fly in each direction.
India is a casing point. Despite the Indian government recently relaxing rules to allow A380s into its airports, the actual deployment remains highly governed by bilateral air service pacts.
The likes of Emirates and Singapore Airlines have launched A380 services to Delhi and Mumbai thanks to more relaxed air service agreements between their respective countries and India.
But for Qatar and Qatar Airways, India remains a restricted market. The airline flies just over 100 scheduled passenger flights daily to a dozen cities across India. It wants much, much more.
The prize catch for Qatar Airways will be permission for more seat capacity to a dynamic market crying out for additional services.
With 50mn or so international air travellers passing through its airports each year – one-third of the overall number when combined with domestic journeys – one can see why India is such an important market for any serious international airline.
Qatar Airways is one such serious player.
And for sure it will be waiting in the wings with the A380s preparing to take advantage when opportunity knocks.
*Updesh Kapur is an aviation, travel, tourism, social and entertainment writer. He can be followed on twitter @updeshkapur
