Qatar Airways announced it has leased the first of four A350 aircraft from LATAM, the South American airline, for terms of 6- to 12-months, in order to meet its operational plan, as well as rising customer demand. The operation and on-board service will be delivered by Qatar Airways pilots and Qatar Airways cabin crew.
LATAM A350s include 30 Business Class seats and 309 Economy Class seats. Qatar Airways-configured A350s offer 36 seats in Business Class and 247 seats in Economy Class.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said, “In order to meet growing demand for our services, Qatar Airways has entered into an agreement with LATAM Airlines Group to secure up to four A350 aircraft for up to one year. The A350, for which Qatar Airways was the global launch customer, is the most technologically advanced aircraft in the skies today. Thanks to our strong partnership with LATAM, we are able to meet increasing customer demand in the short term, in an innovative way.”
Qatar Airways took delivery of its 14th A350, bringing the total operating fleet of A350s to 15 currently apart from the leased LATAM A350 aircraft.
Qatar Airways and LATAM, both members of the oneworld alliance, also accomplished a business deal in December 2016 whereby Qatar Airways Group took a 10 per cent stake in LATAM. Qatar Airways will begin service to Santiago, Chile in 2018, further growing the partnership opportunities in the oneworld alliance.
