Terror attack not to affect traffic: Qatar Air

Qatar Airways, which is seeking to deepen its penetration into the Indian market, disputed the International Air Transport Association's projections last week that there might be a drop in air traffic in 2009 following the Mumbai terror attack.

Dismissing such projections Ali Al Rais, company's executive vice-president, said Qatar has a different view about  India, the ghastly terror attack notwithstanding.

The airlines received 10 World Travel Awards this year, including world's leading business class award, earlier this month.

"We have a different view from that of IATA because we really know India well.

It exercises tolerance for all and this is not the first time it (the terror attack) has happened.

"India has suffered many disasters in the past but the country has always stood on it feet," Rais, who was in New York last week to receive world's leading business class award, often termed as the airline industry's Oscars, told rediff.com.

IATA report for 2009 said all regions, including Asia-Pacific, will show losses. 'India's carriers, which are already struggling with high taxes and insufficient infrastructure, can expect a drop in demand following the tragic terror incidents in November,' the report had said.

But Rais said no matter what happened in India, Qatar never reduced its flights to the country.

"We have big faith in the Indian market. Although at present there is a credit crunch and downturn in the economy as reported by the media, we also have to look at the positives happening around the world -- there has been a drop in the price of petroleum which will automatically fuel air travel," he said.

"The price is almost 50 per cent of what it used to be six months ago. We will use that differential money and put that in quality and service improvement," he said.

Qatar Airways at present serves Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Thrivandrum, Hyderabad, Cochin, Nagpur and Kozhikode.

In response to a question about its expansion and the potential for the market in India, Rais said although Qatar Airways serves 85 destinations around the world, India has always been its focus because of its proximity and because  it is a big country.

"India is a big country, and although we have nine destinations within the country at present, we certainly have more appetite for other destinations within India," he said.

In response to another question, he said Qatar would enter the Indian market in a big way as soon as the Indian government 'relaxes the bilateral rules. We hope that is not going to be long,' he said.

In Asia, he said both China and India are big markets, but Qatar Airways feels that India is a country that Doha knows and it is right at the doorstep of Qatar.

"Naturally, we pay a lot of attention to India. For us, it is a very important market," he said.

Asked why Qatar Airways does not have code-sharing partnership with Indian carriers, Rais said, his company was in the process of doing that following India's open sky policy.

"They have done it with the US which has set the scene for other foreign airlines," he said.

"We are now in the final stage of signing a code-share agreement with one of the Indian carriers." 

Asked to name that Indian company, Rais said he would not be able to do so until the deal is inked.

"But I can tell you we share close ties with Indian Airlines. We have long been working with them on other projects," he signed off.