Qatar Airways Brings the Airbus A350 to Edinburgh

The award-winning airline will offer 406 additional seats per week to passengers travelling between Doha and Edinburgh

Daily Edinburgh service will continue providing people of Scotland one seamless international connection to gateways around the world

Commitment to United Kingdom continues following recent launch of two new routes to London Gatwick and Cardiff

DOHA, Qatar - Qatar Airways has upgraded its capacity to the Scottish capital, Edinburgh to the state-of-the-art Airbus A350-900, the first and only A350 service to Scotland, in order to meet increasing demand from passengers. The daily service between Doha and Edinburgh was previously operated by a Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.

Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: “Our Doha to Edinburgh flights have performed exceptionally well since we launched the route four years ago. We have gradually increased capacity on the route by providing additional frequencies, and we are delighted to now offer a latest generation aircraft with more seating capacity, the Airbus A350-900, for which we were the Global Launch Customer.

Our Edinburgh service has been connecting the people of Scotland to Qatar Airways’ destinations around the world since 2014, with one seamless connection in Doha, and we look forward to continuing our unparalleled five-star service and welcoming our passengers on board.”

The Chief Executive of Edinburgh Airport, Mr. Gordon Dewar, said: “The A350 is an exceptional aircraft that brings something special to what is an already stellar service, and we are excited to welcome it to Edinburgh as the only A350 in operation in Scotland. And the increase in capacity is a sign of the increasing demand for the Doha route which has been one of our top performers since its introduction in 2014.

“We have a fantastic relationship with Qatar Airways, and I am delighted to see that partnership continue. We continue to connect Scotland to the world and now fly to more than 150 destinations, and by providing greater choice to passengers, we will be able to see continued growth at Scotland’s busiest airport.”

Qatar Airways operates 95 flights to the United Kingdom each week, including six daily departures to London Heathrow, 16 weekly departures to London Gatwick and Manchester, and daily flights to Cardiff and Edinburgh, alongside seven flights per week to Birmingham.

The new capacity to Edinburgh will provide even more flexibility and convenience to passengers travelling to the city, and will offer enhanced connectivity for passengers flying from the United Kingdom to Qatar Airways’ extensive global route network of more than 150 destinations including five Australian gateways.

The Airbus A350-900 aircraft features a total of 283 seats, with 36 Business class seats and 247 in Economy Class. Thanks to the extra-wide cabin design, passengers on board are offered unparalleled comfort in both cabins, with Business Class fully-flat beds and spacious seats in Economy.

With high-definition touch screens and dual-screen function that allows for simultaneous viewing, passengers can enjoy countless entertainment options through the airline’s award-winning Oryx One entertainment system, as well as connect to the internet using the OnAir Wi-Fi service.

The national carrier of Qatar is one of the fastest-growing airlines operating one of the youngest fleets in the world. Now in its 20th year of operations, Qatar Airways has a modern fleet of more than 200 aircraft flying to business and leisure destinations across six continents.

The airline has received a number of accolades this year, including ‘Airline of the Year’ by the prestigious 2017 Skytrax World Airline Awards, which was held at the Paris Air Show. This is the fourth time that Qatar Airways has been given this global recognition as the world’s best airline. In addition to being voted ‘Best Airline’ by travellers from around the world, Qatar’s national carrier also won a raft of other major awards at the ceremony, including ‘Best Airline in the Middle East,’ ‘World’s Best Business Class’ and ‘World’s Best First Class Airline Lounge.’