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| Sunday, 30 April 2006 |
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Qatar Airways invests more on Lankan market Qatar Airways will fly twice a day non stop between Sri Lanka and Doha. With the new direct services the airline will offer more capacity on this route giving customers a wider choice and improved connections with additional onward flights to many destinations across the network.
He said that the airline's Colombo services are operated with a mixed fleet of Airbus A320s, A321s, A300s and the airline's flagship A330 long- haul aircraft the A330, offering 21 seats in the business class and 236 in economy with a fully interactive in-flight Audio and Video entertainment system in both cabins. Al Rais said that the new brand "Qatar" was launched in Berlin and the total fleet of the airline will be rebranded as Qatar. He said the word "Qatar" will be emblazoned across the fuselage in large bold burgundy letters and the tail fin painted with an image of the Oryx, the national animal and icon of Qatar. The changes reflect the confidence of the airline moving from a small regional player of just nine years to a full service award winning international airline. The airline is making radical changes to its image reflecting itself as a more progressive and confident airline. He said that everything from new cabin interiors, signature menus, presentation style, service ethos and the fabric used in the seats have been changed. The trolley service in the first and business class will be replaced by ala carte plates individually prepared and served by the cabin crew to each passenger individually. Nowadays travelling customers are more quality conscious demanding a variety of more choices with the highest level of service. Our award winning cabin crew has been trained in the new service and we look forward to welcoming our passengers on all our long-haul routes to experience this unique level of service over the next few months. Many airlines tend to lose focus with growth but at Qatar Airways we are committed to maintaining and increasing our service levels. This is our strength which has won and retained our customers, he said. He said that the airline started nine years ago with seven ageing aircraft and this year we will surpass 50 aircraft while we will add another 10 next year. Today we carry six million passengers a year and enjoy a growth of 5 percent per annum. Now we fly to 70 destinations. We plan to improve the services we provide so that those who fly Qatar experience a superior service. "We have not only added new destinations but have also increased the number of frequencies to the destinations we already fly into," Al Rais said. SG Air Arabia to fly to more destinations in India Air Arabia LLC, the first and only low-fares airline in the Middle East and North Africa, will connect to more destinations in India with the addition of Jaipur and Kochi to its ever expanding list of routes. Flights to Kochi will commence from May 1-6 and Jaipur May 12. This service will provide a vital link for two of the most popular leisure destinations in India. Air Arabia's Chairman, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammed Al Thani said, "We are delighted to be adding more destinations in India and to continue to give the opportunity to more people to go home more often at affordable fares. Our expansion to these two strategic destinations reinforces our commitment to the Indian market and we look forward to increasing our coverage in India in the future." Air Arabia's Country Manager for Sri Lanka, Mayank Dhingra, said, "We are looking at targeting business travellers from Sri Lanka who have interests in UAE and India with some attractive launch fares and have also designed a holiday package for tourists who wish to experience the 'excitement of Dubai and romance of Jaipur' in one trip. With the addition of these two destinations, Air Arabia now connects the UAE to four key Indian cities in the North, Central and the South, taking the total number of flights per week into India to 26. Air Arabia flies daily to Mumbai and five times a week to Nagpur. Etihad Airways hosts Awards Night Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the United Arab Emirates recently hosted the first ever Awards Night at the Cinnamon Grand in recognition of those travel agents who had performed admirably during 2005. The highlight of the evening was the presentation of awards that included Charles Phelps, Penry- Regional General Manager, Asia Pacific, Kumar De Silva, Area Manager, Sri Lanka and Maldives and Kaminga De Zoysa, Sales Manager. The First section of awards recognised agents who had excelled in the Middle East sector. The Coral Award for this sector was won by Hilltop Global (Pvt) Ltd. The Pearl Award was snapped up by The Travel Team while the prestigious Diamond Award went to The Traveller Global (Pvt) Ltd. In the European sector the Coral Award went to Superlink Travels (Pvt) Ltd while the Pearl Award was won by Classic Travel (Pvt) Ltd and the Diamond Award of the night went to Gabo Travels (Pvt) Ltd. The Premium Zone Award went to Worldlink Air Services (Pvt) Ltd while there was also an Appreciation Award presented to Fusion Air Services (Pvt) Ltd. GSA. More glitter at Trans Asia's King's Court Trans Asia's King's Court, a venue for social events, meetings and conferences was refurbished and launched on Tuesday. Resident Manager, Trans Asia Roshan Gurusinghe said the hotel has served its visitors to its best during the 21 years of operation and won the admiration of guests the world over. The hospitality, beauty and location is the reason why visitors prefer to spend their holidays at Trans Asia. The new King's Court refurbished at a cost of Rs. 150 million will add value to the hotel and attract more visitors with its glamour and glitter throughout the day. A task completed so well all rewards should go to Ben Severin, a Singaporean architect who has carved a niche to the hotel's fame. Gurusinghe said the new ballroom will give Trans Asia a competitive edge and be the best in the city. The King's Court could accommodate over 400 persons and is sound proof for three concurrent sessions. The unique feature of the ballroom is the public address system. The lighting system to meet the needs and moods of any function is another aspect of the room. Banquet revenue is 50 percent of the food and beverage revenue of a hotel. The new King's Court which provides a refined and peaceful ambience with its elegant designs will meet this expectation, Gurusinghe said. (LF) |
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| Produced by Lake House |
Senior Manager Commercial Operations Ali Al Rais said that Qatar Airways
is investing more on the Sri Lankan market as it is very encouraging. At
present we are enjoying a growth of 15 percent. 
