DOHA - Qatar Airways has recently taken delivery of its second Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, adding to the first one inducted into the fleet on November 29.
The Boeing 777s are currently operating on routes in the GCC region but from next month, will be flying to Washington's Dulles International Airport , a distance that is covered in 14 hours non-stop.
The airline's third 777 will be delivered next summer. Qatar Airways will have 32 of the aircraft in total, including freighters.
A Qatar Airways official told The Peninsula: "We have not had a problem with crew for manning the aircraft.
Many of our pilots already had been trained on the Boeings and it was a matter of a refresher course.
As for cabin crew, several have joined us from airlines which operate Boeing 777s, so there was no difficulty at all for them in adapting to the aircraft."
Earlier, the airline depended on an all-Airbus fleet and has acquired Boeings to add diversity. The Boeing 777 can accommodate 335 passengers with 42 in Business Class in a 2-2-2 seating configuration while Economy Class has 293 seats in a 3-3-3 configuration.
The aircraft has no First Class and there are no plans - at least now-to do the necessary refitting to have such a section.
Meanwhile, the airline would not comment further on the decision to yank flights from the Doha-Yangon route with effect from January 9 next year.
An official would only say the decision was taken on commercial grounds. "However, that does not mean it will not be reintroduced at a later date," he said.
© The Peninsula 2007
