Airline CEO's address profiled Qatar's impact in GCC's thriving aviation sector.
WASHINGTON – Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker delivered a key address at The 21st Annual Arab-U.S. Policy Makers Conference, which took place in Washington D.C.
Addressing policymakers, students, intelligence officials, and governmental leaders, Mr. Al Baker shared his insights on Qatar Airways and its unique position as a global player in aviation, the economic drivers for Qatar, and as a geopolitical ally for the prosperous GCC region (comprising of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, the Sultanate of Oman, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar).
The topic of Al Baker’s speech was the ‘Unprecedented Emergence of the Aviation Sector in the GCC’.
The GCC region stands apart as a fertile ground for aviation competition — spurring new alliances, route expansions, and uncompromising service standards. The GCC’s draw as a tourist destination and economic hub continues to fuel the region’s unprecedented growth on the world stage.
Al Baker’s speech also covered Doha’s confident outlook on the future, as directed by Qatar’s Instrumental National Vision 2030. Its four pillars for sustainability: economic, social, human, and environmental.
Qatar Airways has seen rapid growth in just 15 years of operations, currently flying a modern fleet of 111 aircraft to 119 key business and leisure destinations across Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, North America and South America.
Since the beginning of 2012, Qatar Airways has launched flights to Baku (Azerbaijan); Tbilisi (Georgia); Kigali (Rwanda); Zagreb (Croatia), Erbil (Iraq), Baghdad (Iraq), Perth (Australia) and Kilimanjaro (Tanzania).
Over the next few months, Qatar Airways will launch services to a diverse portfolio of new routes, including Maputo, Mozambique (October 31); Belgrade, Serbia (November 20); Warsaw, Poland (December 5), Gassim, Saudi Arabia (7 January 2013); Najaf, Iraq (January 23); and Chicago, USA (April 10).
