The aviator

Despite holding his own pilot’s licence, nowadays Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker is more likely to be found behind a desk than in the cockpit. But as Diana Milne discovers, he has lost nothing of his passion for the aviation industry.

“Within 10 years, Qatar Airways has elevated its position from a regional player into an international carrier, and is now recognised within the industry as one of the best airlines in the world”
-Akbar Al Baker, CEO of Qatar Airways

There aren't many airline bosses with the ability to fly planes as well as buy them. But Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker believes in taking a hands-on approach to running his business. As the holder of his own private pilot licence he is passionate about flying and has spearheaded Qatar Airways' transformation from regional to international carrier. When he took up the post in 1997 Qatar Airways operated just four aircraft and flew to limited local destinations in the Middle East. Today it flies to over 80 destinations across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, South Asia, the Far East and North America and operates a fleet of 63 aircraft.

But the best is yet to come for the airline, which is set to double its fleet size to 110 by 2013 and currently has over 200 aircraft worth over US$30 billion on order. On the back of these achievements, Qatar Airways has won a string of prestigious international awards including being named one of the world's top 10 airlines in the 2008 Skytrax Awards and retaining the prestigious five-star award for excellence in customer service, and standards.
Describing what makes his airline stand out from its rivals in the increasingly competitive Middle East aviation market, Al Baker says: "Within 10 years, Qatar Airways has elevated its position from a regional player into an international carrier, and is now recognised within the industry as one of the best airlines in the world. Our five-star service, attention to detail and dedication to our passengers, as well as our superior equipment and the excellent food and beverages served onboard, set us apart from other airlines, giving us a significant competitive edge."

Going global
Al Baker's fierce ambition for the growth of the airline has played no small part in its success story. In the past two years he has embarked on a multi-billion dollar shopping spree, which included snapping up 80 Airbus A350s, 60 Boeing 787s, 29 Boeing 777s and eight Airbus 321s. These aircraft will enable Al Baker to expand Qatar Airways' network, focusing in particular on the US where it has expanded its potential by shifting its New York operation from Newark Liberty International Airport to John F Kennedy International Airport and starting daily flights between Doha and New York. "This year will see new attractive leisure and business destinations across the globe joining our network. In addition, we will step up frequencies on various routes to increase flexibility and convenience for our valued customers. We are gearing up for the new route launch to Houston in Texas - our third destination in the US following our launches to New York and Washington last year," says Al Baker.

Asia is also an important growth area for Qatar Airways given the growth in air traffic in the region, he adds: "The expansion of our route network is always based on commercial factors. Forecasts in air traffic growth in Asia and especially China are enormous. We expect high revenues on routes serving the Asian region and, as other parts of the world have strong economic relationships with China, India and other Asian economies, we are confident of increasing ticket sales in these regions to Asia and vice versa." With this in mind, the airline last year launched its ninth India route, from Doha to Kozhikode and also unveiled scheduled flights to Guangzhou in Southern China.

Blazing a trail
Despite having only been in business as an international carrier for 11 years, Qatar Airways has already beaten its more established rivals on several occasions when it comes to adopting cutting edge technology and has developed a reputation for being an industry innovator. In 2006 it become the first international carrier to offer live digital television to its customers on board its A340 and A330 aircraft. In 2010 it is set to become one of the world's first airlines to launch flights on the twin-deck A380-800 ‘super jumbo'.

The carrier is also aiming to blaze a trail when it comes to cutting carbon emissions, by becoming the world's first airline to power its fleet using eco-friendly gas-to-liquids kerosene oil in partnership with Qatar Petroleum, Shell, Airbus, Rolls Royce and Qatar Science and Technology Park. "Qatar Airways is known for being an innovative and progressive industry leader," says Al Baker. "We operate one of the youngest and most modern fleet of aircraft in the sky with an average age of just three years."

Describing the facilities on board the newest addition to its fleet, the Boeing 777, he says: "Our new Boeing 777 aircraft offers one of the best in-flight entertainment systems in the world, providing an unrivalled selection of more than 700 audio and video entertainment options." Underpinning Qatar Airways' expansion strategy has been a strong focus on building brand strength and increasing awareness of the Qatar Airways brand worldwide. Last year the airline unveiled a new global television, print and online advertising campaign that centered around its new tagline: The world's five-star airline. The campaign included three television commercials that were aired on CNN International, BBC World and Al Jazeera International and a branding campaign across news websites. Describing the importance of the campaign, Al Baker says: "Our strategy is clear - to open up new routes to key business and leisure destinations worldwide from our Doha hub and to continue raising brand awareness throughout the world. As our passenger numbers are steadily growing, our marketing activities are stepped up too."

But he says he plans to pay more than just lip service to Qatar Airways' slogan. The airline has positioned itself as one which provides a luxury service to economy as well as first and business class passengers: "We believe in offering our passengers the ultimate in comfort, whether they fly in our premium cabins or in economy class. As the Skytrax awards are based on a survey from 15 million passengers, it clearly proves that the traveling public recognises that our product is truly five-star," says Al Baker.

Putting Qatar on the map
In a bid to reinforce this message further, Al Baker has overseen the creation of Qatar Airways' Premium Terminal at Doha Airport - the first of its kind in the world - which features Jacuzzis and spas, video conferencing facilities and fine dining restaurants. Al Baker has also been instrumental in the development of the multi-million dollar New Doha International Airport, which is scheduled to open in 2011. The 22 square kilometre airport will be located to the east of the existing airport on land partly reclaimed from the Gulf and will include modifications to accommodate the new Airbus 380 and state-of-the-art passenger facilities. It will play an important part in enhancing Doha's reputation internationally and helping to build up the city's hospitality sector.

The government of Qatar is keen to emulate the success of neighbouring GCC countries in attracting international tourists. It aims to increase its hotel capacity from 4400 rooms to 29,000 by 2012 and is developing several major projects, including the US$14 billion Pearl-Qatar offshore residential and leisure development and Qatar Entertainment City - a 180,000 square foot development that will feature a US$275 million theme park. Qatar Airways plays a key role in helping to the country to establish itself as a world tourism destination and in turn will benefit when it achieves these aims. "As Qatar's infrastructure develops due to the economic boom it is enjoying, we will see more travellers - and there is already evidence of this - ending their journey in Doha for business or leisure," says Al Baker "Qatar is building its tourism infrastructure, focusing on quality, high-end tourism with excellent five-star hotels and resorts under construction, which will help boost the profile of my country in the international arena and encourage more people to visit Qatar for holidays."

Like every country in the GCC however, Qatar faces tough challenges ahead with the global economic downturn posing a threat to the development of its real estate projects and casting doubt over projected tourist numbers. Last year Qatar Airways also faced the threat posed by rising fuel costs. Al Baker describes this threat as "a major concern for the industry" which had "a significant impact on airlines' bottom line". He goes on to say that these twin challenges have led the airline to implement cost cutting exercises: "Carriers are increasingly hedging their fuel in order to control their operational costs and better plan for the future. Qatar Airways also employs such strategies as it has proved to be a successful way to reduce costs and manage risks."

This optimism masks the harsh reality that Qatar Airways, like all Middle East airlines, faces a battle to survive in the year ahead. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) carriers in the region, stand to lose US$200 million in profits this year, with the overall loss for the global industry estimated at US$2.5 billion. These numbers are not enough to shake Al Baker's confidence however - the airline is sticking to its ambitious targets. And if his performance since taking the helm in 1997 is anything to go by Al Baker stands a pretty good chance of weathering the storm.

Will they won't they?
Speculation is rife that Qatar Airways could soon launch a budget airline. The Middle East's low-cost airline market is becoming increasingly competitive with carriers including Air Arabia, FlyDubai and Jazeera Airways all operating cheap flights across the region. In July 2008, following its purchase of eight Airbus A321s, Al Baker told reporters that he was ready to "launch a low-cost carrier within 90 days".

BM asked Al Baker whether he still intended to go through with his plans. "I am against the concept of low-cost carriers, but if the airline's market share is eroded by competitors in this area, then yes, we will consider launching our own low-cost airline. To date, we do not believe low-cost is a real threat because we are a full service airline serving a niche market. Low-cost carriers have their own market niche. We believe products do all the talking. If you have a superior product on the ground and in the air, like we have, that gives us a true competitive edge."

About Akbar Al Baker
Akbar Al Baker is a graduate in economics and commerce and has worked at various levels in the Civil Aviation Directorate before becoming Qatar Airways' CEO in 1997.
Over the last decade, he has spearheaded the growth of the airline, which operated only four aircraft in a regional capacity prior to his appointment. He is also leading the development of the multi-billion dollar New Doha International Airport, which is scheduled to open in 2011.
Al Baker has been a successful businessman in Doha for more than 25 years and is also CEO of several divisions of Qatar's national airline - Qatar Airways Holidays, Qatar Aviation Services, Qatar Duty Free Company, Doha International Airport, Qatar Distribution Company and Qatar Aircraft Catering Company.

"Within 10 years, Qatar Airways has elevated its position from a regional player into an international carrier, and is now recognised within the industry as one of the best airlines in the world"