Qatar Airways has celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Helsinki with an event attended by Finnish VIPs and guests from the travel industry and media.
The evening was hosted by Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar al-Baker, who welcomed the dignitaries, including Qatari ambassador to Finland Saud bin Abdullah Zaid al-Mahmoud, Finnish ambassador to Qatar Riitta Swan and Finnish professional racing driver Mika Salo.
The Masters of Ceremonies – two of Finland’s most recognised TV and radio personalities, Vappu Pimia and Sebastian Rejman – entertained the delegation throughout the night’s proceedings.
On the occasion, al-Baker said: “I am very happy to be here celebrating the launch of our flights to Helsinki, our fourth gateway into the Nordics from our hub in Doha. Qatar Airways is proud to be the first Middle East airline to serve Stockholm, Copenhagen, Oslo and now Helsinki. We have a special relationship with people in this region and I am pleased to be able to offer them an additional service connecting them to the Middle East, Asia and beyond.”
Qatar Airways’ first flight touched down at Helsinki airport on October 10 where it was welcomed by a VIP delegation, including Finland’s Minister of Transport and Communications Anne Berner.
The Doha-based carrier will fly to and from Helsinki daily with an Airbus A320 aircraft, which offers 120 seats in the Economy Class cabin and 12 seats in Business Class.
“Helsinki is the airline’s 12th new destination this year. Qatar Airways is one of the fastest growing airlines, with a new aircraft being delivered approximately every 10 days. Continuing on its path of expansion, the airline will add new routes to Krabi on December 6, the Seychelles on December 12 and Auckland on February 5, 2017,” the airline said in a press
statement.