Qatar Airways plans to create a mega-carrier
Singapore — Qatar Airways wants to create a virtual mega-carrier that will benefit from economies of scale in negotiations on fuel and aircraft purchases, while it boosts investment in other airlines, its CE said on Tuesday. The Qatari carrier announced a $661m deal on Monday to buy a 9.61% stake in Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways to broaden its reach and potentially allow the oneworld alliance member to increase traffic through its Doha hub. "Frankly, I wish I could buy more. But the Swire Group and Air China hold most of it and I’m the third-largest shareholder, which is not bad," Qatar Airways CE Akbar Al Baker said at the CAPA Asia Summit in Singapore, referring to Cathay’s biggest stakeholders. Qatar Airways has been unable to fly to the previously lucrative markets of the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia because of an airspace rights dispute, prompting the carrier to invest elsewhere. Al Baker said the airline expects to report a loss in the financial year to March 31 ...
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