Qatar Airways Update

My last blog noted that on January 18, I had interviewed by telephone Mr. Tony Hughes, Senior Vice-President—the Americas—of Qatar Airways. I mentioned that at the time of our interview neither of us had the slightest inkling of the world-changing events that would take place in Egypt so soon after our conversation.  On February 6, Qatar Airways sent follow-up information relating the airline’s changes during the unrest in Egypt.  Qatar Airways continued to serve Egypt. Because of curfews in Alexandria and Cairo, the airline flew to and from three other cities, with additional capacity to meet demand.  The airline’s corporate jet division also flew its Bombardier fleet on several flights at “near full capacity†out of Luxor.  Since then, of course, Hosni Mubarak has stepped down, but many questions remain…  Who will end up running the country in the long run? Will the revolution spread to other Arab nations? What will happen to the long-standing nonviolent relationship between Israel and Egypt?  It seems obvious that the world will change dramatically, but in what ways and to what extent? The jury is still out.  BTW, the reporting of that telephone interview will appear in my regular column in the next issue of Airport Business magazine, which will be out this week.  We’d love to post your comments. Please click the comment tab at the top.