Qatar Cargo adds airbus A330F, Boeing 747F aircraft to its fleet

Jan 07, 2016: Qatar Airways Cargo adds the seventh Airbus A330F and first Boeing 747F nose loader aircraft to its fleet at its home base in Hamad International Airport, Doha. The airline now features a fleet of 16 freighters including seven Airbus A330F, eight Boeing 777F and one Boeing 747F. The new aircraft is currently scheduled to support the airline’s busy network by increasing frequencies to Bahrain, Brussels, Chennai, Hyderabad, London Stansted and Mumbai.

Qatar Airways Cargo is scheduled to receive further aircraft next year and is expected to expand its fleet to a total of 21 freighters by 2017.

“We are delighted to welcome the seventh Airbus A330F and our first Boeing 747F nose loader to our growing freighter fleet,” said Ulrich Ogiermann, chief officer cargo, Qatar Airways. “The arrival of this new aircraft brings our total fleet up to 16 freighters and is an important addition to the airline at a time when we are experiencing unprecedented growth. Increasing our capacity in tandem with increasing our network reach is an essential part of our strategy for the coming years and we expect to have a total of 21 freighters in our fleet by 2017.”

The A330 freighter can carry a maximum gross pay load of up to 68 tonnes. The A330-200F’s large main-deck cargo door allows the aircraft to accept all commonly-used pallets and containers, enabling the transport of a full range of cargo – from high-value consumer goods to express packages and perishables. The main deck cargo compartments and lower deck cargo compartments on A330-200F are ventilated and have temperature control options of 5°C to 25°C.

The B747 freighter is ideal for the requirements of express cargo and industrial freight operators. The B747 freighter has seating for up to eight cargo attendants or grooms for horses. The B747F has a main deck nose door and a mechanised cargo handling system.

Qatar Airways Cargo recently announced at a packed press conference in Doha that according to the latest IATA international FTK figures it is now the third largest international cargo airline in the world. This is phenomenal growth for the rapidly expanding company, which has risen to the number three position from 16th place in just five years.

Further announcements made at the press conference included plans to launch two new specialty products: QR Equine and QR Express. Akbar Al Baker, Chief Executive, Qatar Airways Group, also revealed plans for a new multi-deck cargo facility to be opened by 2018 at Hamad International Airport. When complete the new facility will increase the hub’s overall capacity to 4.4 million tonnes per year with the potential for further expansion to 7 million tonnes in the future.