QATAR: Qatar Airways’ Inaugural Flight From Doha To Malta Lands At Malta International Airport

Qatar Airways’ inaugural flight from Doha to Malta landed at Malta International Airport on Tuesday 4 June 2019, marking the launch of the airline’s newest gateway to Europe.

Operated by an Airbus A320 aircraft, flight QR383 was welcomed with a celebratory water cannon salute upon arrival at the historic Mediterranean island’s international airport.

This was followed by a welcome ceremony attended by the Charges d'Affaires of the State of Qatar to Malta, Mr. Abdulla Khalid A A Al-Derham; Malta’s Minister of Tourism, the Honourable Dr. Konrad Mizzi; and Qatar Airways Senior Vice President Europe, Mr. Sylvain Bosc.

Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: We are delighted to launch direct services to Malta, the latest addition to Qatar Airways’ rapidly expanding European network.

Set against the incredible backdrop of the Mediterranean Sea, Malta, with its stunning natural attractions and breathtaking architecture, is one of Europe’s most historic and culturally significant destinations.

“With the flexibility of seasonal daily flights in summer, and four-times-weekly services in winter, we look forward to welcoming business and leisure travellers alike on board so that they may experience this charming destination for themselves.”

Malta International Airport Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Alan Borg, said: We are delighted to welcome this award-winning flag carrier to our airline family and to grow our route network further with the addition of Doha.

The convenient flight schedule which will be operated by Qatar Airways throughout the year, will certainly strengthen our connections to the rest of the world and allow tourists from new markets outside Europe to discover Malta’s rich history, unique traditions and spectacular underwater world.

The new direct services to Malta will be operated by an Airbus A320 aircraft, featuring 12 seats in Business Class and 120 seats in Economy Class.

As well as enjoying the award-winning in-flight service on board, passengers travelling to Malta will also have access to Oryx One, Qatar Airways’ in-flight entertainment system, offering the latest blockbuster movies, TV box sets, music, games and much more.

Malta is the third new destination to be introduced by the airline this summer following the launch of flights to Izmir, Turkey, and Rabat, Morocco, in May; with Davao, the Philippines, and Lisbon, Portugal, joining the network later in June; followed by Mogadishu, Somalia, on 1 July; and Langkawi, Malaysia, on 15 October.

A multiple-award-winning airline, Qatar Airways was named ‘World’s Best Business Class’ by the 2018 World Airline Awards, managed by international air transport rating organisation Skytrax.

It was also named ‘Best Business Class Seat’, ‘Best Airline in the Middle East’, and ‘World’s Best First Class Airline Lounge’.

Qatar Airways currently operates a modern fleet of more than 250 aircraft via its hub, Hamad International Airport (HIA) to more than 160 destinations worldwide.

Current Flight Schedule:

Doha (DOH) to Malta (MLA) QR381 departs 01:25 arrives 06:45 (Mon, Wed, Fri, Sun)
Malta (MLA) to Doha (DOH) QR382 departs 09:20 arrives 15:55 (Mon, Wed, Fri, Sun)

Doha (DOH) to Malta (MLA) QR383 departs 08:05 arrives 13:25 (Tues, Thurs, Sat)
Malta (MLA) to Doha (DOH) QR384 departs 17:45 arrives 00:20 +1 (Tues, Thurs, Sat)

Qatar Airways, the national carrier of the State of Qatar, is celebrating more than 20 years of Going Places Together with travellers across its more than 160 business and leisure destinations on board a modern fleet of more than 250 aircraft.

The world’s fastest-growing airline will add a number of exciting new destinations to its growing network this year, including Lisbon, Portugal; Malta; Rabat, Morocco; Langkawi, Malaysia; Davao, Philippines; Izmir, Turkey; and Mogadishu, Somalia.

A multiple award-winning airline, Qatar Airways was named ‘World’s Best Business Class’ by the 2018 World Airline Awards, managed by international air transport rating organisation Skytrax.

It was also named ‘Best Airline in the Middle East’, ‘World’s Best First Class Airline Lounge’ and ‘Best Business Class Seat’, in recognition of its ground-breaking Business Class experience, Qsuite.

Qatar Airways has been awarded the coveted “Skytrax Airline of the Year” title, which is recognised as the pinnacle of excellence in the airline industry, four times.

Qsuite, a patented Qatar Airways product, features the industry’s first-ever double bed in Business Class, as well as privacy panels that stow away, allowing passengers in adjoining seats to create their own private room, a first of its kind in the industry.

Qatar Airways was the first Gulf carrier to join global airline alliance oneworld, enabling its passengers to benefit from more than 1,000 airports in more than 160 countries, with 14,250 daily departures.

Oryx One, Qatar Airways’ in-flight entertainment system offers passengers up to 4,000 entertainment options from the latest blockbuster movies, TV box sets, music, games and much more.

Passengers flying on Qatar Airways flights served by its B787, B777, A350, A380, A319 and select A320 and A330 aircraft can also stay in touch with their friends and family around the world by using the award-winning airline’s on-board Wi-Fi and GSM service.

Qatar Airways proudly supports a range of exciting international and local initiatives dedicated to enriching the global community that it serves.

Qatar Airways, the official FIFA partner, is the official sponsor of many top-level sporting events, including the FIFA 2022 World Cup, reflecting the values of sports as a means of bringing people together, something at the core of the airline’s own brand message - Going Places Together.

Qatar Airways Cargo, one of the world’s leading international air cargo carriers, serves more than 60 freighter destinations worldwide via its world-class Doha hub and also delivers freight to more than 160 key business and leisure destinations globally on more than 250 aircraft.

The Qatar Airways Cargo fleet includes two Boeing 747-8 freighters, 16 Boeing 777 freighters and five Airbus A330 freighters.


Tourism Observer

UAE: Air Arabia Confirms Five Airbus A320s

Sharjah-headquartered Air Arabia PJSC (AIRARABI:DFM), the largest low-cost carrier operator in the Middle East and North Africa, has confirmed options for five additional Airbus A320 aircraft. The delivery of original contract covering 44 firm orders and 5 options will be completed in 2017.

The five new Airbus A320 aircraft will be put into service starting second quarter 2017 backlog and have a book value of US$485 million. These new aircraft will join Air Arabia’s expanding fleet of Airbus A320 aircraft currently serving over 120 routes from five operational hubs.

Air Arabia has been constantly rewarded over the past years with the A320 Family Operational Excellence Award by Airbus for achieving the highest level of A320 family aircraft utilisation in the world with 99.8 percent operational reliability. In 2010, the carrier set a new world record achieving 30,000 flight hours in just six years with one of its CFM56-5B-powered A320 aircraft.

Founded in Sharjah, Air Arabia began operations in 2003 and currently operates a fleet of 46 Airbus A320 aircraft offering flights to over 120 destinations in 33 countries from five hubs across the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Europe.

The A320 Family, which includes the A318, A319, A320 and A321, is recognized as the benchmark single-aisle aircraft family in the world.

Egyptair Flight Vanishes, Jet Was Bound for Cairo From Paris, 66 On Board

EgyptAir said a plane carrying 66 passengers and crew on a flight from Paris to Cairo went missing on Thursday, disappearing from radar over the Mediterranean Sea.

"An official source at EgyptAir stated that Flight MS804, which departed Paris at 23:09 (CEST), heading to Cairo has disappeared from radar," the airline said on its official Twitter account.

Later Tweets by EgyptAir said the plane, which was traveling at an altitude of 37,000 feet (11,280 meters), disappeared at 02:45 a.m., 20 minutes before it was due to land at 03:05 a.m., after entering Egyptian airspace.

The Airbus A320 aircraft was carrying 56 passengers, including one child and two infants, and 10 crew, EgyptAir said.

The pilot had clocked up 6,275 hours of flying experience, including 2,101 hours on the A320, while the first officer had 2,766 hours, the airline said.

According to flightradar24.com, the 12-year-old plane's last known position was above the Mediterranean Sea.

Egypt's civil aviation ministry said search and rescue teams were looking for the missing jet. A ministry source also said technical information about the condition of the plane was being gathered.

Ehab Mohy el-Deen, the head of Egypt’s air navigation authority said that Greek air traffic controllers notified their Egyptian counterparts that they had lost contact with the plane. “They did not radio for help or lose altitude. They just vanished,” he said.

A spokesman at the French foreign ministry said checks were being carried out but the ministry had no further information. The French aviation authority could not be reached immediately for comment.

With its ancient archeological sites and Red Sea resorts, Egypt is a popular destination for Western tourists. But the industry was badly hit following the downing of a Russian jet last year, the ongoing Islamist insurgency and a string of bomb attacks in the country.

An Airbus A321 operated by Russia’s Metrojet crashed in the Sinai on Oct. 31, 2015, killing all 224 people on board. Russia and Western governments have said the plane was likely brought down by a bomb, and the Islamic State militant group said it had smuggled an explosive device on board.

An EgyptAir mechanic, whose cousin joined Islamic State in Syria, is suspected of planting the bomb, according to sources familiar with the matter.

In March, an EgyptAir plane flying from Alexandria to Cairo was hijacked and forced to land in Cyprus by a man with what authorities said was a fake suicide belt. He was arrested after giving himself up.

EgyptAir has a fleet of 57 Airbus and Boeing jets, including 15 of the Airbus A320 family of aircraft, according to airfleets.com.

The last fatal incident involving an EgyptAir aircraft was in May 2002, when a Boeing 737 crashed into a hill while on approach to Tunis–Carthage International Airport, killing 14 people.

In October 1999, the first officer of a Boeing 767 deliberately crashed the plane into the Atlantic Ocean about 60 miles south of Nantucket Island, Massachusetts, killing all 217 people on board.

INDONESIA: Mandatory Training For Airbus A320 After AirAsia Crash

The Indonesian aviation authorities are inspecting all Airbus A320 aircraft registered in the country, following the conclusion by investigators that a technical glitch contributed to the crash of an Indonesia AirAsia plane in the Java Sea last year.

Indonesia's Ministry of Transportation launched the inspections on Thursday, saying it will last for six months and target a total of 75 A320 aircraft operated by four airlines registered in Jakarta.

Suprasetyo, the ministry's director general for air transportation, says the four airlines are Indonesia AirAsia, Indonesia AirAsia Extra, Citilink and Batik Air.

The first two are separate local units of Malaysia's AirAsia Group, Asia's largest budget carrier. Citilink is the low-cost unit of Indonesia's national flag carrier, Garuda Indonesia, while Batik Air is the premium division of the country's largest low-cost carrier, Lion Air.

"Any A320 aircraft found to have experienced repetitive problems will be temporarily grounded," Suprasetyo told a press briefing on Thursday.

Investigators from Indonesia's National Transportation Safety Committee, or KNKT, on Tuesday announced that the AirAsia plane crash in the Java Sea on Dec. 28, 2014, which killed all 162 people on board, was partly caused by repetitive failures of the plane's rudder travel limiter unit, or RLTU, which helps control rudder movement.

Analysis of the flight data recorder retrieved from the sea showed that the RLTU failed four times since the plane took off from Surabaya, East Java at 5.35 a.m., en route to Singapore.

Investigators said RLTU failures were supposed to be a minor issue.

But the pilot's and co-pilot's mishandling of the problem, coupled with "ineffective communications" between them, put the aircraft in an "upset" situation -- during which it nose dived sharply from a height of 32,000 to 38,000 feet, before stalling in midair and crashing into the sea.

Investigators attributed the crew's mishandling of the situation to a lack of upset recovery training. They said AirAsia did not make the training mandatory because Airbus' manual for the A320 said it was not required.

Airbus earlier said in an emailed statement to the Nikkei Asian Review that the manufacturer had received the final accident report from the Indonesian authorities and was carefully studying its content.

Muhammad Alwi, director for airworthiness and aircraft operations at the transport ministry, said inspectors would check "all systems of the planes", but with a special focus on RTLUs.

Aside from inspecting the condition of the planes, Indonesia's transportation ministry will also make upset recovery training mandatory for all airlines registered in the country.

"We will increase the frequency of flight trainings, especially on upset recovery, from once for every 12 months to once for every six months," Suprasetyo added.

Furthermore, pilots in command will soon be obliged to report every problem they experience during flight upon landing.

This is because KNKT investigators also found that the AirAsia aircraft had experienced a total of 23 RLTU problems in the year leading up the crash. Information regarding the past glitches apparently had not reached the maintenance team before the plane was permitted to fly.

"We're currently outlining a safety circular that will detail procedures to integrate reports of mechanical problems [experienced after every flight], manually and or electronically," Suprasetyo said.

The ongoing inspections and the upcoming new regulations will only apply on Airbus A320 registered in Indonesia.

For A320 aircraft flying in Indonesia's airspace that are registered in other countries, the Indonesian aviation authority will issue recommendations to its foreign counterparts to implement similar moves.

The Airbus A320 are commonly used for short- to medium-range flights. They are popular among many Southeast Asian airlines serving the region.

AirAsia Group operates a total of 160 A320s, including Indonesia AirAsia's 29 planes. The Philippines' Cebu Pacific Air just took delivery of its 33rd A320 in October. Singapore's Tiger Air operates 22 A320s.