“An important milestone”: Qatar Airways celebrates launch of Toronto-Doha flights

STORY BY JESSE SHIP 

Qatar Airways celebrated an historic milestone Thursday night (Dec. 12) at the St. Regis Hotel ballroom in downtown Toronto amid a cozy live three-piece jazz band, a sumptuous Middle Eastern spread and passed hors d’oeuvres only the luxurious St. Regis could provide.

The event marked the announcement of Qatar Airways’ new Starlink-enabled aircraft flights to Toronto Pearson (YYZ) from Doha, was a triple-header, coinciding with Qatar’s National unification Day, along with the anniversary of 50 years of diplomatic relations with Canada.

The airline’s inaugural Toronto flight – a Boeing 777 landed at YYZ yesterday – officially marked the start of three weekly non-stop flights from Hamad International Airport (DOH), the “World’s Best Airport” as voted by Skytrax in 2024.

The evening began with introductions from Craig Thomas, Qatar Airways vice-president of sales, Americas, and a special video welcome message from Qatar’s ambassador to Canada, Dr. Khalid bin Rashid Al Hamoudi Al Mansouri who applauded the teams three-year spanning efforts for bringing the non-stop flight plans to “the world’s best airport” into reality.

Toronto has become Qatar Airways’ second destination in Canada, in addition to Montreal, which has served more than 1.6 million passengers across seven daily flights to and from Montreal-Trudeau International Airport (YUL), since its launch in 2011, of which 15 per cent of passengers ended their journey in Toronto.

YYZ also marks the airline’s fourteenth gateway to the Americas.

The new Toronto service will provide travellers from Canada and beyond with seamless access to destinations across Qatar Airways’ extensive global network. It also comes as the airline surpasses its target of fitting Starlink to 12 Boeing 777 aircraft by the end of 2024, with 14 aircraft upgraded in under 55 days, bringing the total to 15.

Paul Starrs, senior vice-president of international sales at Qatar Airways, was one of the travellers on the inaugural Toronto flight.

“Today marks an important milestone for Qatar Airways which now spans 170 destinations worldwide,” he said.

“The launch of this new gateway proclaims our commitment to providing greater access to Qatar Airways exceptional service and renowned in-flight product. Toronto is a perfect addition to our network. With three weekly flights, we are excited to grow our footprint and introduce more travellers to the world class services Qatar Airways is known for. Toronto Pearson is a critical hub for global travellers.”

Also in attendance was Toronto Pearson’s Khalil Lamrabet, chief operating officer of the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA), who received great fanfare proudly welcoming Qatar Airways Canada’s largest and busiest airport.

“Qatar Airways is renowned worldwide for its exceptional service, innovation and commitment to excellence. This launch represents a breach between Toronto and Doha, providing critical opportunities for trade, tourism and built on the people-to-people relationship between our two countries…Through our Pearson LIFT program, we are embarking on a journey to make Toronto Pearson one of the most advanced, passenger friendly and sustainable airports in the world. We look forward to seeing our partnership flourish.”

As the largest global airline to offer complimentary Starlink on board, Qatar Airways is also the world’s first airline to operate Boeing 777 Starlink-equipped aircraft. This means that passengers can now stay entertained and connected throughout their journey, streaming their favourite shows and live sports, enjoying online gaming, or working seamlessly at 35,000 feet.

While flying on board one of Qatar Airways’ 15 aircraft, passengers can access a world of services, whether it’s Business Class à la carte, or unlimited snacks and beverages in economy class, or more than 8,000 entertainment options.

The route from Toronto Pearson is sure to unlock an exciting range of destinations for passengers looking to fly to the Middle East, Asia and Africa. Global connectivity is a strategic importance to Canada and to Pearson.

As the demand for international travel rapidly grows, the route adds to the variety of convenient and accessible flight options for passengers.

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