Qatar Airways now has 60 777-9s on firm order.
FARNBOROUGH—Qatar Airways has revealed an order for 20 more Boeing 777-9s, which is likely to be followed by a much larger order for the next-generation widebody in early 2025.
This order was already on Boeing’s backlog as having been placed by an unidentified customer, with Qatar Airways signing on for the aircraft earlier this year.
Qatar Airways was among a group of airlines—including its Gulf rivals Emirates and Etihad Airways as well as Lufthansa—that launched the 777X at the 2013 Dubai Airshow. Qatar Airways’ 2013 commitment was turned into a firm order by the 2014 Farnborough Airshow when the carrier signed up for 50 777Xs. Qatar Airways now says the latest deal for 20 aircraft takes the number of firm orders to 60 for the -9. The airline has also bought 34 777-8Fs, taking its total commitment to almost 100 aircraft, making Qatar Airways the second-largest 777X customer behind Emirates.
Earlier this year, the airline had launched a request for proposals for a large number of additional widebodies—significantly more than 100 aircraft, according to industry sources. CEO Badr Mohammed Al-Meer said on the sidelines of the Farnborough Airshow that “we want to take our time for an order this big.” He expects it to be finalized in the first quarter of 2025. “We are not so desperate,” he said, pointing to aircraft being delivered based on current orders.
The airline’s current order backlog includes 25 737 MAXs, 12 more 787-9s, 50 Airbus A321neos and 18 A350-1000s.
Meanwhile, Al-Meer has decided to extend operations of Qatar Airways’ A380s. According to an earlier plan, the A380s were going to be retired this year after the fleet had unexpectedly been brought back post-COVID due to the strong rebound of demand at the time. But now, Al-Meer says the A380 is the best-suited aircraft on certain routes, such as to Australia, where the carrier is limited by traffic rights. The airline plans to invest more into its A380 fleet this year, mainly by upgrading the inflight internet offering. It is also discussing further cabin changes.
Qatar Airways has 10 A380s, two of which continue to be stored, according to the Aviation Week Network Fleet Discovery database.
Fleet is not the only area where the airline is considering investments. According to Al-Meer, the carrier is “in the final, final stages” of signing all documents that will make it a shareholder in an airline in the southern part of Africa. He did not disclose the identity of the airline, but industry sources have pointed to Airlink as the future partner. In May, Airlink CEO Rodger Foster stated, “As an industry leader with an unrivaled regional network, Airlink is continually searching for new opportunities to grow, and it is in this context that we frequently engage in discussion with our various commercial partners.”
Al-Meer declined to comment on whether Qatar Airways was considering taking a stake in Virgin Australia. But he did see a lot more possible synergies with International Airlines Group, in which Qatar Airways owns a 25% stake.
Qatar Airways expects up to 53 million passengers in its network in 2024, up from 45 million a year ago. Net profit in the first quarter “more than doubled, and July was much better than last year,” Al-Meer said.
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