Aviation History
Qatar Airways was founded in 1993 and relaunched under new state ownership and leadership in the mid-1990s, growing rapidly into one of the world's leading long-haul carriers from its Doha hub. The airline joined the Oneworld alliance in 2013 and moved into the newly built Hamad International Airport in 2014, but a 2017-2021 diplomatic blockade by neighboring Gulf states closed regional airspace to it — a reminder that regional politics can still disrupt its network even though relations have since normalized.
Established on 22 November 1993 and began commercial operations on 20 January 1994 with two Airbus A310s.
Restructured under full Qatari state backing, with Akbar Al Baker taking the helm as CEO to drive an aggressive expansion strategy.
Qatar Airways became a Oneworld member on 29 October 2013, integrating its network with major global partners.
On 27 May 2014 the airline relocated its Doha hub from the old Doha International Airport to the newly opened Hamad International Airport.
Qatar Airways became the launch customer for the Airbus A350 XWB, taking delivery of its first aircraft on 22 December 2014.
Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt cut ties with Qatar and barred Qatar Airways from their airspace starting June 2017, forcing costly rerouting.
The regional airspace restrictions were lifted in January 2021 following the Al-Ula reconciliation agreement, restoring Qatar Airways' regional routes.
Qatar Airways · Qatar Executive
Wikipedia, Qatar Airways corporate history; note the 2017-2021 blockade reflects a resolved but historically significant regional dispute
Aviation Firsts
Dukhan Airport — Dukhan (1938): Built in the late 1930s as an oil-field airstrip on Qatar's west coast; served as a secondary aviation hub until overshadowed by Doha International Airport (1959). Largely disused/derelict for aviation today — some buildings preserved, most of the grounds in ruin. · Bayanat Engineering ↗
Doha International Airport (1959): The RAF assisted with site selection/early preparation in the late 1940s; the site was handed to the Qatari government by 1949; formally opened 4 Oct 1959. Closed to scheduled commercial traffic 27 May 2014 (replaced by Hamad International Airport); briefly reopened for commercial flights Sep 2022 during the FIFA World Cup; now used by the Qatar Emiri Air Force and Qatar Amiri Flight. · Wikipedia ↗
Dukhan (late 1930s) predates Doha International (1959) by roughly two decades as an operating airstrip, but it was a small oil-camp airstrip, not an international gateway — most sources implicitly treat Doha International as Qatar's first real/major airport. Neither is in active scheduled commercial service today (Doha International was superseded in 2014 by Hamad International).
Qatar Airways (1993): Established by the Qatari government 22 Nov 1993; operations began 20 Jan 1994, initially as a small, budget-oriented regional carrier. Repositioned toward business travel under CEO Akbar Al Baker from 1997 — verified as a rebrand/strategic overhaul of the same legal entity under continuous state ownership, not a relaunch as a different airline. Qatar's government also held a partial (25-50%) stake in the separate, jointly-owned, multi-country Gulf Air from 1974 until withdrawing in 2002; Gulf Air is a distinct regional carrier, not an earlier wholly-Qatari airline, so it does not compete for this title. · QR ↗ · Wikipedia ↗
No documented foreign entrant found. Checked Qatar Aviation Services (QAS, the domestic Qatar Airways-owned handler and historically the dominant/sole handler at Doha), dnata (whose own corporate history page lists Qatar only as a travel-agency presence, not airport ground handling), Swissport (not listed in its current network), and NAS, but found no dated, sourced record of any foreign ground-handling company entering the Doha/Hamad International Airport market.
Fleet by Operator
Passengers by Operator
Annual Passenger Traffic by Airport
Airlines2
Live Air Traffic4 aircraft
Source: adsb.lol — community ADS-B network. Busiest of this country’s top 6 profiled airports by traffic right now, not a full national count.
Aircraft Spotted Here
Photo: Philipp Greiml via JetPhotos
Photo: Marin Ghe. via JetPhotos
Photo: Perise_ via JetPhotos
Photo: MP Aviation via JetPhotosPhotos © their respective photographers, via JetPhotos.com — click a photo to view the original.