Guyana, Qatar sign air service agreement

DPI, Guyana, Thursday, September 26, 2019

The Civil Aviation Authorities of Guyana and Qatar have signed an air service agreement – a move expressing the continued confidence in this country’s current and projected economy.

A report in Qatar’s The Peninsula this morning stated that the agreement was signed in that country by Director-General of the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCCA), Egbert Field and the Chairman Qatar Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), Abdulla bin Nasser Turki Al Subaey.

Minister of Transport and Communications, H E Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti and Chairman of the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) Board, Lawrence London witnessed the inking of the agreement on behalf of the two countries.

According to Guyana’s Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), the agreement will permit Qatar’s national carrier ‘Qatar Airways’ to operate passenger and cargo flights, as well as cooperation between the carriers concerned. It will also permit Qatar Airways to have an operation centre in Guyana to fly to any country in the region and other regions as well.

Qatar Airways Company is the state-owned flag carrier of Qatar. The airline operates a hub-and-spoke network, linking over 150 international destinations across Africa, Central Asia, Europe, Far East, South Asia, Middle East, North America, South America and Oceania from its base at Hamad International Airport, using a fleet of more than 200 aircraft.

Back in 2017, QATAR Tourism Authority (QTA) and Qatar Airways had announced that that country would immediately be allowed visa-free entry for citizens of 80 countries, including Guyana.

Citizens of those countries wishing to visit Qatar will no longer need to apply or pay for a visa; instead, a multi-entry waiver will be issued free-of-charge at the port of entry, upon presentation of a valid passport with a minimum validity of six months and a confirmed onward or return ticket.

In November 2016, Qatar introduced a free transit visa, which allows passengers of all nationalities transiting in Qatar for a minimum of five hours to stay in Qatar for up to 96 hours (four days). In May 2017, QTA launched +Qatar, an initiative to promote the country as a stopover destination, with the national carrier, Qatar Airways. These measures, along with intensified international marketing, have resulted in a 39% increase in the number of stopover visitors during the first six months of 2017, compared with the same period last year.

As part of Qatar Airways’ and QTA’s combined efforts to boost tourism in the country, the award-winning airline has accelerated its global expansion plans. It also recently announced the launch of a number of new destinations that it is adding to its network by the end of August, including Kiev, Ukraine and Prague, Czech Republic. Thursday, the airline launched Sohar, in the Sultanate of Oman. Qatar Airways also recently launched a direct service to Dublin, Republic of Ireland; Nice, France and Skopje, connecting even more people to more places, and making it easier than ever for passengers to visit Qatar as part of their journey.

Editor’s Note: Hub-and-Spoke network: A hub is a central airport that flights are routed through, and spokes are the routes that planes take out of the hub airport.