Qatar Airways kicks off National Day celebrations

Qatar Airways’ official celebration of National Day kicked off yesterday with an event, highlighting the country’s rich culture and heritage.The event took place under the patronage of HE the Minister of Transport and Communications Jassim Seif Ahmed al-Sulaiti, and was hosted by Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar al-Baker.Qatar Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA) chairman Abdullah bin Nasser Turki al-Subaey, Qatar Aeronautical College director general Sheikh Jabor bin Hamad al-Thani, QCAA’s former chairman Abdul Aziz Mohamed al-Nuaimi and Mesaimeer Passport Services Centre head Major Yousuf Abdullah al-Muhaizia also attended the event.The event features a range of activities celebrating local culture, including henna painting, falcon handlers, traditional Qatari ‘Ardha’ as well as handicrafts and booths offering traditional local foods. The event is open to all Qatar Airways Group employees and their families and it also marks the year-end celebrations of the airline’s 20th anniversary.Akbar al-Baker said, “I am honoured to be here alongside members of our local community in celebration of our country’s National Day. A core value of Qatar Airways is expressing pride in Qatar, and this year especially, we celebrate our patriotism, solidarity and unity as a nation. “This year is a particularly important one for us as an airline, as we celebrate our 20th anniversary of global operations. As our country’s national carrier, we are passionate about bringing people from around the globe to Qatar so that they can discover for themselves the generous hospitality and unique heritage of our country. We look forward to many more years of successfully bringing the world to Qatar.”The event, which continues today at Airport Park adjacent to the airline’s head office, featured with a special performance by well-known Qatari singer Fahad al-Kubaisi, as well as a poetry reading by Qatar Airways pilot senior first officer Hadi al-Qahtani, who composed a special poem for the occasion.Qatar Airways passengers on all flights departing Doha on National Day will be offered a specially-designed box containing a selection of dates, so they can join in the country’s annual celebrations. Each passenger will also be provided with a specially-produced set of postcards showcasing images of Doha taken by local photographers to mark the special occasion.For Qatar Airways, the year 2017 has been a tremendously successful year as the airline has won more than 50 awards across multiple categories since January, including being named Airline of the Year, by international air transport rating organisation Skytrax. Qatar Airways was named World’s Best Business Class, Best Airline in the Middle East, and World’s Best First Class Airline Lounge, at the Skytrax awards ceremony held in Paris, in June.Qatar Airways proudly flies the flag of Qatar to more than 150 destinations worldwide, bringing people to Doha from every corner of the globe via the award-winning, state-of-the-art Hamad International Airport. The national carrier of Qatar is one of the fastest-growing airlines operating one of the youngest fleets in the world. Now in its 20th year of operations, Qatar Airways has a modern fleet of more than 200 aircraft flying to business and leisure destinations across six continents.Qatar Airways will be adding flights to many more exciting destinations to its network throughout the remainder of this year and 2018, including St Petersburg, Russia; Canberra, Australia and Cardiff, UK, to name just a few.