Qatar Airways, HIA report exceptionally high volume of traffic during Eid season

If one thought the illegal blockade on Qatar imposed by its neighbouring countries would detract people from travelling out of the country for holidays, then one could not be more mistaken.  

Not only was it business as usual at the Hamad International Airport (HIA), Qatar Airways reported an ‘exceptionally high’ volume of traffic during the busy Eid Al Fitr holiday season, reported Gulf Times.

Despite the airspace ban, Qatar Airways’ international flights had been unaffected and were flying in and out of the country smoothly. 

“In spite of recent restrictions imposed on the airline, our operations to and from Doha remain resilient and are running smoothly. In the past seven days, 510,949 passengers have flown from Hamad International Airport on board more than 2,900 flights. During the peak Eid Al Fitr holiday period, 49,794 of those passengers were joining flights directly from Doha,” Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker told The Peninsula.

HIA CEO Eng Badr Al Meer also said the airport had seen unusually heavy footfall this holiday season.

“The airport has had a very busy Eid period with the total number of passengers travelling on all airlines, including the national carrier Qatar Airways, from June 19 to 25 reaching 580,000. HIA continues to urge passengers to arrive early for check in during this busy holiday period,” he told Qatar Tribune.

HIA recently reported that it served 19m passengers from January to June 2017, 8% more than those served in the same period in 2016.

Qatar Airways has also been going from strengths to strengths this year, with it announcing strong profit margins as well as scooping the prestigious Skytrax Airlines of the Year award for the fourth year.