A start-up airline in the United States has offered a 25% stake to Qatar Airways, Chief Executive Akbar al-Baker said on Wednesday, giving the Gulf carrier a second chance to buy into a US airline.
Qatar Airways tried to buy up to 10% of listed American Airlines last year, but changed its mind in August after opposition from the US carrier's management.The start-up airline was private and so Qatar Airways would not face the same opposition this time, al-Baker told reporters at an air show in Kuwait.
However, he declined to name the airline or disclose where it would be based and did not say if Qatar Airways intended to purchase the stake.
Qatar Airways bought 9.61% of Cathay Pacific and 49% of Italy's Meridiana last year.
Those acquisitions added to a portfolio of airline holdings that includes 20% of British Airways-parent International Consolidated Airlines Group, and 10% of South America's LATAM Airlines Group SA.
Qatar Airways was blocked last year from flying to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates because of restrictions imposed by those countries.
Al-Baker expressed regret about management changes at Airbus, including the impending departure of Chief Operating Officer Fabrice Bregier, due to step down in February.
Bregier was long assumed to be the heir apparent to Chief Executive Tom Enders, who is to leave the company next year.
Qatar Airways is one of the largest Middle East airlines and is a major customer of Airbus and its rival, Boeing.
