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IN the
early days of aviation, only the moneyed class could
afford to take to the air in what then was the new
frontier of space. Those were pioneering days, when
commercial airplanes were propeller-driven and limited
space allowed passengers to carry only a piece of
luggage. If it was not claustrophobia that threatened
the passenger, the oh-so-slow speed could drive them mad
from boredom. The advent of the wide-body types of jets
democratized air travel, taking in passengers from all
walks of life. Airline companies grew by leaps and
bounds as more people gained access to the lifestyle of
the jetsetters, albeit in economy class.
But now,
not content with the comfort and style that many
airliners dish out, Qatar Airways has upped the ante.
Its obsession: to lure more first- and business-class
travelers, seeing that the market is booming and more of
these tycoons, pop stars, movie celebrities, CEO’s and
captains of industry want a more pampered existence up
there at 40,000 feet.
BusinessMirror spoke with
Rohan Seneviratna,
Qatar
Airways area manager for the Philippines and Micronesia,
who provided a glimpse of what lies ahead in this highly
competitive business and what his company intends to do
to stay ahead of the pack.
Although
in existence only for the last 10 years, Qatar Airways
had been ranked as a “five-star airlines” with 57
aircraft. It expects this to soar to 110 all-Airbus
planes by 2015.
From it
hub in Doha, a peninsula jutting out of the Persian
Gulf, the airline has developed a global network of
destinations covering Europe, Middle East, Africa,
Indian subcontinent and Far East. By 2005, Qatar Airways
flew to 56 destinations, rising to 77 cities by May 2007
with the addition of Ho Chi Minh City, Bali and Chennai.
Seneviratna, who traces his roots to Sri Lanka but is
now a British citizen, said their aim now “is to
position ourselves as one of the premier airlines in
this part of the world.”
“There
are only five airlines in the world ranked five-star and
we have been in this rank for three consecutive years,”
he said, adding that their current drive in the
Philippines is to offer more premium class to passengers
traveling to
Europe.
Currently, Qatar Airways flies out of
Manila
and Cebu to Doha with nine flights and three flights,
respectively, exclusively on A330 aircraft. The airline
is the first Middle Eastern carrier to feature
first-class seats that convert into 180-degree fully
flat beds and business-class seats-cum-lie flat beds. It
has also one of the most advanced inflight entertainment
systems in the sky, the audio-video on demand, on its
A330 long-haul fleet where passengers in first, business
and economy class can play, forward, rewind and stop
programs at a time of their choice.
“Of
course, we are not going to ignore the workers traffic,
the overseas Filipino workers, but more than that, we
want to project ourselves as the true five-star airline,
as a true premier airline operating in other market
segments,” he said.
He said
his company has been in the country for the last nine
years, but in the last few years, saw the aviation
market here improving greatly. “I just saw the
statistics which came out a few days ago from the
authorities, the market is huge,” he said. He attributed
this to travelers moving to the United States and other
destinations like the well-to-do taking premium seats to
various leisure destinations such as the Holy Land, the
Vatican and the ski resorts of Europe.
Qatar
Airways is offering tempting “dishes” to premium
travelers by opening the $90-million Premium Terminal in
Doha, “the world’s only dedicated commercial passenger
terminal for first-class and business-class passengers.”
Finished
in November 2006, the terminal features dedicated
check-in areas, a spa, Jacuzzi, duty-free shops, a
business center and fine-dining restaurants.
Seneviratna compares their exclusive terminal to a hotel
where one can get everything one needs while in transit
so that the hassles of travel do not get in one’s
nerves.
Despite
competition from half a dozen Middle Eastern airlines,
Qatar Airways has grown tremendously at 35 percent every
year, and this year alone has opened up 10 destinations.
“That
means the airline is opening new destinations every
month, which is a huge growth,” Seneviratna said,
attributing its successes to its CEO and chairman of the
Qatar Tourism Authority, Albar Al Baker. |
