CARDIFF AIRPORT LANDS ‘GAME-CHANGING’ DOHA HUB DEAL
CARDIFF Airport has received its biggest-ever boost after landing one of the world’s best known and fastest-growing airlines in a deal which also provide a huge boon for the Welsh economy.
Qatar Airways is investing in a new, frequent long-haul direct service from the Rhoose-based airport to the Middle Eastern hub of Hamad International Airport in Doha.
The deal was announced by Qatar Airways Group chief executive, His Excellency Mr Akbar Al Baker.
The new route, which will start in 2018 and potentially could be daily and seven days a week in the summer season, will:
See hundreds of thousands of new passengers using Cardiff Airport each year, not just from Wales but England, too, particularly the southwest;
provide a direct route into the world’s fastest-growing hub airport Hamad International in Doha, giving access to its 150 connecting destinations;
boost Wales plc, bringing it closer to key global markets, such as India, China, Singapore and Australasia;
bring the airport closer to its target of three million passengers a year (currently 1.3 million), at which stage it would require a new terminal building in an investment running into several hundred million pounds;
hopefully provide a catalyst for Middle Eastern investment, including from sovereign wealth funds, into new infrastructure projects in Wales, including potentially a new terminal at Cardiff Airport itself;
encourage passengers from the Middle East to use existing Flybe and Vueling services at the Welsh Gov-
ernment-owned Cardiff Airport for connecting flights to other locations in the UK and Europe;
strengthen the case for a direct service from Cardiff to North America, with passengers from the Middle East changing at Cardiff Airport for a connecting flight; and
will mean passengers who want to travel to, say, Australia or the Middle East can fly from Cardiff instead of having to travel to airports in London.
It will be the first scheduled, direct service from Wales to any Middle Eastern airport.
It will also provide a service well beyond the airport’s South Wales catchment area, but will also attract passengers from other parts of the UK, in particular the south west of England and the Midlands.
Cardiff Airport secured the route in the face of competition from other airports in the UK, including its closest rival, Bristol.
Other airlines currently not operating from Cardiff Airport will be taking a keen interest in the route. And if successful it could bring forward their plans to invest in routes out of Cardiff.
Debra Barber, chief executive of Cardiff Airport, said: “I am immensely proud that Qatar Airways has chosen Cardiff Airport to operate its new service to Doha.
“It is fantastic that we will now be able to offer our customers more choice of travel with a world-class airline providing easy connections to destinations across the world.
“More than one million passengers per year from our region are travelling to destinations that are on the Qatar Airways network.
“Over 90% of these passengers are currently travelling via London and this new service will give them the opportunity to fly more conveniently from Cardiff, their local airport.
“It has been a long journey to get to this stage, with discussions spanning a number of years.
“Over the coming months we will work with the team at Qatar Airways to confirm the details of the service and look forward to the flights being on sale in the near future.”
Cardiff Airport chairman Roger Lewis added: “This is a game-changing announcement for Cardiff Airport and for Wales.
“The benefits of this relationship will be transformational for both businesses and passengers across the south west of England and for Wales.
“I sincerely thank His Excellency Mr Akbar Al Baker, for the trust he and Qatar Airways are placing in us. He is a truly inspirational leader and I am honoured to have worked with him on this project.
“I am confident that the team at Cardiff Airport will deliver a worldclass service with Qatar Airways for all of our passengers both visiting Wales and travelling across the world.
“I look forward to returning to Doha in the near future to further develop this special bi-lateral relationship between Wales, the UK and Qatar.”