Qatar Airways (Stand C130) is again at the Dubai Airshow on Emirates Airlines’ home turf evidently to remind its rival that it can’t have this prosperous territory all to itself. Along with Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways, the Doha-based carrier has adopted a very high profile as it seeks to take a share of the market to provide long-haul connecting service through its Gulf hub. As Emirates has proved, the combination of geographic location and the long-haul ranges of today’s large jetliners means travelers can fly nearly anywhere via the Gulf.
With Emirates having placed the largest-ever order for new aircraft at the Dubai show two years ago, Qatar has responded with its own headline news, ordering large numbers of Airbus A320s and A350s and Boeing 777s and 787s. The aircraft are needed to enable the airline to fulfill a long-term plan to provide enormous numbers of passengers into and out of the region.
