Qatar Airways will resume some of their Australian services starting Wednesday 20th May. The announcement follows the airline’s approval to operate to Brisbane, granted back in early April when the carrier helped take over 5,000 people home in the face of tough state borders.
This is, of course, part of the gradual restart of services around the world, which will see Qatar flying to 80 destinations by the end of June.
The airline, which is currently giving 100,000 free flights to frontline healthcare workers from every country on their network, will fly an Airbus 350-1000 on flights to Brisbane via its hub at Hamad International Airport. That means 46 Business Class and 281 Economy Class seats.
This will be part of a planned 21 passenger flights to Australia per week. That includes three-weekly flights to Brisbane, four-weekly flights to Perth, daily flights to Melbourne, and daily flights to Sydney. All services will be operated on the Airbus 350-1000, all sporting the configuration detailed above.
“In these difficult times, customers are looking for an airline they can trust, our commitment and willingness to get people home continues to provide assurance,” said Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker. “We have built a strong level of confidence with passengers, governments, trade partners, and airports as a reliable partner during this crisis and we intend to continue delivering on this mission.”
Internationally, Qatar Airways continue to operate to 16 destinations in Europe, including London, Frankfurt, Paris, and Amsterdam. Come the end of June, that will increase to 21 European destinations.
Health Measures
Qatar has also emphasised their ongoing protocol of the “highest possible hygiene standards”, including the regular disinfection of aircraft, use of cleaning products recommended by the International Air Transport Association and the WHO, and thermal screening of all crew.
On board, all the airline’s linen and blankets are washed, dried and pressed at microbial lethal temperatures, after each flight. These items are then sealed into individual packaging by staff wearing hygienic disposable gloves.
All meal service utensils and cutlery are washed with detergents and rinsed with demineralised fresh water at temperatures that kill pathogenic bacteria. All sanitised equipment is handled by staff wearing hygienic disposable gloves, while cutlery is individually re-packed.
