Qatar Airways to increase flights, unveils virtual human cabin crew

Qatar Airways revealed its increased flight frequencies to some 15 global destinations in the next 12 months, including additional flights to Berlin starting this winter.
The national carrier made the announcement at the inaugural day of ITB Berlin 2024, the international trade expo Tuesday where it also unveiled its latest digital innovation and becoming the first airline in the world to launch a virtual digital human cabin crew – the revamped ‘Sama’.
The national carrier also marked this year’s ITB event with growing its flight frequency to Berlin, increasing it from 14 weekly flights to 18 starting winter this year. Qatar Airways is also launching its inaugural flight to Hamburg on July 1.
Sama 2.0 is an advanced AI cabin crew enhanced to interact with passengers for curated experiences in the airline’s immersive platform, QVerse.
The reveal of Sama was held with a holographic display at the airline’s new and innovative stand. Powered by conversational AI, Sama showcased her knowledge on the diverse facets of Qatar Airways’ operations.
The airline’s new booth also offers a sensory pod where visitors can experience the ‘Qsuite’ when onboard Qatar Airways’ business class.
With Hamburg as a recent addition to the German market, Qatar Airways will now serve five destinations in Germany with a total of 71 weekly flights, including the increased frequency to Berlin, connecting through the airline’s award-winning hub, Hamad International Airport.
Destinations served by Qatar Airways will receive the following year-on-year flight frequency this summer: Barcelona – to be increased from 14 weekly flights to 21, Boston – from seven weekly flights to 10, Brussels – from seven weekly flights to 10, Copenhagen, from four weekly flights to seven, Kuala Lumpur – from seven weekly flights to 14, Manchester –from 18 weekly flights to 21, Miami – from seven weekly flights to 10, Nice – from four weekly flights to seven (to increase in May ahead of the F1 Monaco Grand Prix and Cannes Film Festival), Oslo – from seven weekly flights to 14, Paris – from 21 weekly flights to 28, Rome –from 18 weekly flights to 21, Seoul – from seven weekly flights to eight, Tunis – from seven weekly flights to 10 and Warsaw – from 10 weekly flights to 14.
Qatar Airways Group CEO Badr Mohammed al-Meer said: "As a long-standing exhibitor at ITB Berlin, Qatar Airways understands what excites our audience, and is proud to bring something new to the trade show. Innovation is a vital cornerstone of our mission, and with the new and improved Sama, we are taking another defining step towards enhancing our digital experience.
“The multiple flight increases in our existing destination network emphasise the surge in demand for air travel, bridging together countries and people for better tourism and trade opportunities."
Qatar Airways chief commercial officer, Thierry Antinori, said: “We are delighted to be back at ITB Berlin to share our announcements with industry partners. The expansion of our German market to Hamburg demonstrates our continuous commitment to our passengers by offering them even more choice to connect to Qatar Airways’ network of over 170 global destinations.
“We are pleased to be the only airline in the Middle East, which will soon fly to five cities in Germany, and connect our passengers to the world through Doha’s Hamad International Airport – recognised as Skytrax’s Best Airport in the Middle East for nine consecutive years. We look forward to welcoming all our commercial and trade partners to our stand over the next few days to commemorate our new milestones, and interact with our innovative products and services.”