The Doha-based airline will be the only Middle Eastern carrier to operate into Cambodia with services due to start on February 20.
Phnom Penh will be Qatar Airways’ latest destination in Asia, which now represents around 30 per cent of the carrier’s 119-strong network of global cities. Its Asian coverage includes diverse business and leisure cities such as Hong Kong, Hanoi, Osaka, Tokyo, Perth, Beijing, Shanghai, Melbourne, Perth, Delhi, Mumbai, Karachi and Goa.
Phnom Penh will also be Qatar Airways’ 11th gateway in the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), following on from successful operations to Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Bali, Ho Chi Minh City, Jakarta, Hanoi, Singapore, Manila, Phuket and Yangon.
Cambodia attracts millions of tourists and business travellers every year visiting historic attractions such as the majestic Angkor Wat in Siem Reap and the premier beach island resort of Sihanoukville – both within easy reach of the fabulous city of Phnom Penh.
Located on the banks of the Mekong River and bordered by Thailand, Laos and Vietnam, Phnom Penh is Cambodia’s largest city and the country’s economic, cultural and political centre.
Qatar Airways will operate to Phnom Penh International Airport which is currently undergoing expansion to cater for increased capacity to handle five million passengers a year by 2017 – more than double the current amount.
Today’s news is Qatar Airways’ fourth new route announcement so far for 2013 with Gassim in Saudi Arabia, Najaf in Iraq and Chicago, the carrier’s fourth US gateway, launching between January and April, with further start-ups planned during the year.
Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker said daily flights from the airline’s Doha hub to Phnom Penh will provide increased travel opportunities for travellers from Europe, the Middle East and North America.
“As we continue our aggressive worldwide expansion programme, we are delighted to offer our customers a much awaited connection to one of Asia’s most popular and well-loved destinations,” he said.
"We very much look forward to celebrating our arrival in Cambodia next year and playing our part to help further boost the country’s vibrant tourism industry, which is the country’s second largest income provider.”
Qatar Airways’ Doha – Phnom Penh route will be operated with an Airbus A330 in a two-class configuration of up to 248 seats in Economy and up to 36 in Business. Flights will operate via Ho Chi Minh City.
The aircraft features seatback TV screens providing all passengers in both cabins with the next generation interactive onboard entertainment system – a choice of more than 800 audio and video on demand options.
Qatar Airways has seen rapid growth in just 15 years of operations, currently flying a modern fleet of 111 aircraft to 119 key business and leisure destinations across Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, North America and South America.
Since the beginning of 2012, Qatar Airways has launched flights to Baku (Azerbaijan); Tbilisi (Georgia); Kigali (Rwanda); Zagreb (Croatia), Erbil (Iraq), Baghdad (Iraq), Perth (Australia), Kilimanjaro (Tanzania) and Yangon (Myanmar).
Over the next few months, Qatar Airways will launch services to a diverse portfolio of new routes, including Maputo, Mozambique (October 31); Belgrade, Serbia (November 20); Warsaw, Poland (December 5), Gassim, Saudi Arabia (7 January 2013); Najaf, Iraq (January 23); and Chicago, USA (April 10).
