Officials cut a cake to mark the arrival of Qatar Airways’ flight QR 448 at Basra International Airport.
Basra, Iraq: Qatar Airways yesterday launched flights to Basra — its fourth destination in Iraq.
The new service, operating four-times-a-week non-stop from the airline’s Doha hub, takes the carrier’s global network to 128 destinations worldwide.
The launch also marks the rapid expansion by Qatar Airways in Iraq since the middle of 2012 when it began flights to Erbil, followed by the capital Baghdad and, earlier this year, Najaf.
With yesterday’s route launch, Qatar Airways’ frequency across Iraq rises from 12 to 16 flights each week – representing a more than 25 percent increase in services.
Basra also marks the carrier’s fourth new Middle Eastern destination launched so far this year after Najaf, Gassim in Saudi Arabia and Salalah in Oman.
The arrival of Qatar Airways’ flight QR 448 was welcomed at Basra International Airport with a reception presided by local officials. Qatar Airways Senior Vice President GCC, Levant, Iran and Indian Subcontinent, Fathi Al Shehab, led an official delegation on the flight from Doha.
“The Republic of Iraq has been on our list of expansion priorities for some time and the last 12 months have seen us move forward very quickly opening up four new gateways in Iraq with a fifth Sulaymaniyah starting in August,” said Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker. The Peninsula
