Qatar Airways moves to WTC office

Qatar Airways opened its new Colombo office at the World Trade Centre, in Colombo yesterday. Located on the second and third floors of the West Tower office building, the 6,000 sq ft area houses the Doha-based airline's reservations, sales and administrative offices.

Qatar Airways Senior Manager Commercial Operations, Ali Al Rais, who has overall responsibility for South Asia, attended the event which also attracted senior aviation industry officials.

The new reservations office, located on the second floor, provides walk-in passengers with services such as booking tickets, securing reconfirmations, and any other travel requests. Level three houses administrative functions such as the finance and sales departments, together with the area manager's office.

Qatar Airways launched flights to Sri Lanka in 1993 in its former guise before its relaunch in 1997. Colombo was the airline's first route outside the Middle East. The airline has gradually increased frequency between Colombo and its operational hub of Doha over the years, before reaching its current level of 14 flights a week.

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker who is also in Colombo said that they have enjoyed a long-standing relationship with Sri Lanka over the years.

"The opening of a large premises reflects the importance the Airlines commitment to Sri Lanka," he said.

"Traffic between Sri Lanka and Qatar and beyond to our extensive network of routes is growing significantly and we are extremely pleased to continue offering our Five Star hospitality with our unique levels of service to the people of Sri Lanka."

Qatar Airways has witnessed a sharp increase in traffic across all segments in the Sri Lankan market, including business travellers, Visiting Friends and Relatives (VFR) and the student sector. The VFR segment had boomed after the peace accord in 2003.

Colombo is one of 66 destinations on the Qatar Airways global map.

Qatar Airways currently employs 42 Sri Lankans in Colombo who are offered training opportunities to work within the network.