Two days after Qatar was forced to close its major hub airport because of a missile attack, the president of Qatar Airways has offered a glimpse of the logistical challenge the airline faced in the 24-hour period.
Badr Mohammed Al Meer called his Middle Eastern nation’s diversions of 100 planes simultaneously that day the “most complex” in modern history.
Inside the Qatar Airways Integrated Operations Centre.Credit: Courtesy of DennisBunnik Travels
It took 24 hours to re-route more than 20,000 passengers aboard 90 flights sent away from Doha in midair. They were diverted just before Iran fired a salvo of missiles into Qatari territory on Tuesday (AEST).
Qatar’s synchronised global operation was, “in an instant, scattered into dozens and dozens of disrupted flight scenarios across continents, each with their own complexities and requirements,” Meer wrote in an open letter to customers.
Travellers “found themselves caught in the middle of one of the most severe and complex operational challenges in modern aviation history,” he wrote.
Iran targeted the US military presence at Al Udeid Air Base, which sits 33 kilometres west of the main Doha airport, at around 7.45pm on Monday Doha time (2.45am Tuesday AEST).
Scenes from Doha’s Hamad International Airport after an airspace closure.Credit: Damian McKee
Of the flights, 25 were diverted to Saudi Arabia, 18 to Turkey, 15 to India, 13 to Oman, and 5 to the United Arab Emirates. The remaining aircraft were re-routed to hubs in London, Barcelona and across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, Qatar said. Qatar Airways operates a fleet of more than 250 planes.
Flights diverted around the Gulf as Iran fired missiles at a US base in Qatar.Credit: Flight Radar 24
Adding to the situation, some of Qatar’s flight crews had exceeded their legal operating hours which restricted their movement, he wrote. That meant most of the fleet, including A380s carrying more than 450 passengers each “were now out of position, some grounded at airports with curfews”. Other flights had to wait for clearance to re-enter restricted airspace.
“Every part of the operation had to adapt in real time – without precedent, and without pause.”
Badr Al Meer, chief executive officer of Qatar Airways.Credit: Bloomberg
Hamad International Airport in Qatar is a major hub for Qatar Airways, on the popular long-haul route that crosses from Asia into Europe via the Middle East.
Flights in and out of Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest hub, were also temporarily suspended.
After Qatari airspace reopened some five hours later, the diverted aircraft began returning to Doha.
Qatar Airways: Nearly 100 flights were diverted.
The number of passengers at the airport surged from 10,000 to more than 22,000 by 5.00am.
More than 4600 customers were housed in about 3200 hotel rooms across Doha, 35,000 meals were distributed, as well as water, “comfort kits, and reassurance were offered face to face, flight by flight”.
On Tuesday, 390 flights operated, rising to 578 the next day, Meer said.
Qatar runs nine daily flights from Australia’s capital cities to Doha, four of them operated in partnership with Virgin Australia. It owns 23.4 per cent of the Australian carrier.
Hamad International Airport in Doha, Qatar.Credit: Getty Images
Iran attacked the US in retaliation for a US aerial mission that aimed to destroy Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
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