Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer, Akbar Al Baker
Doha: Even as airlines world over are asking for aid or subsidy, Qatar Airways is using its own funds and has not yet asked for any aid from the government said the Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Akbar Al Baker in a video shared by the airlines on its twitter account.
In a series of tweets on its social media account, the official also touched upon the various concerns regarding air travel and the steps that it is taking to ensure a safe travel.
"I am very proud to say that Qatar Airways is using its own funds to continue operations and we have not gone to our government, like most of the airlines around the world for state aid or subsidy. The airlines that used to accuse us of the same thing are now going to ask for state aid and subsidy," said the Group CEO.
He added the airline is still managing with the credit lines and the financing it has in place as of now but as the situation may continue like this for longer time and if it does, "we would ask for equity injection from our owner, that is the state of Qatar."
Talking about the upheaval in the airlines industry, he said, "Air travel has always rebound after every upheaval. We will continue, we will grow and we will keep on sustaining ourselves and be a major player in the aviation sector."
Qatar Airways is making less job cuts than many airlines announced around the world. “We will make sure that we rebound in time, stronger than we were in the past, ” he said.
"We will grow once we have seen the business rebounding and we will keep on sustaining ourselves and being a major player in the aviation market."
Hamad International Airport has taken all the precautions with most sophisticated systems to ensure safe travel. He said, "I think we are the only airport in the world that is using UV robots in a big scale to disinfect our airport. We have SD, sanitiser and all the staff are wearing masks and gloves, We make sure that there is very very minute possibility of you being infected from anybody at HIA."
Qatar Airways will make sure that apart from PPE, it will supply its passengers with masks, gloves, sanitisers, even face shields, making it mandatory to put it on in order for them to be comfortable. "The HEPA filters that are installed in both BOEING and Airbus are again systems that are continuously circulating air in the cabin and the filters are cleaning the circulated air to 99.99 percent from viruses and bacteria. So all these precautions have been taken," he added.
Apart from the videos the airlines also shared the highlights of a series of interview that the Group Chief Executive had with world-leading media agencies.
Some important points:
- Qatar Airways was the largest international carrier in capacity terms, based on March April and May figures
- The airlines has persevered, grown, expanded, invested even more during the last three years. "There has been no slowdown, we have survived and become stronger."
- Qatar Airways is the largest airline in the world over the past three months measured by Available Seat Kilometre
- Tourism will rebound as soon as there is a treatment or a vaccine
- Qatar Airways is negotiating with both Boeing and Airbus to fulfil the requirement of deferrals and we hope that both manufacturers will oblige
- "We are a strategic investor in airlines like LATAM Airlines, IAG, Cathay Pacific and CSAIRGlobal and we will stay with them"
