إتمام 7 سنوات من التشغيل في مطار حمد الدولي

Hamad International Airport (HIA) will celebrate seven years as a premier global transport hub on May 27th, 2021. HIA has handled over 200 million passengers and 13 million tonnes of cargo to date, and is consistently ranked as one of the world's best airports.

HIA has consistently proven to be the airport-of-choice for global travelers, which has been recognized by prestigious industry institutions over the years, by leveraging its geographical location at the crossroads of East and West and utilizing innovative resources to deliver seamless and efficient airport operations. Qatar's airport is undergoing a multi-phased development to reinforce its status as a worldwide hub and accommodate the rise of Qatar Airways, the country's official carrier.

HIA has evolved and innovated in the last year to face the challenges provided by the COVID-19 pandemic. The airport's quick and effective response allowed it to keep its doors open throughout the epidemic, connecting travelers to their homes while preserving operational excellence and putting the safety and well-being of its employees and passengers first.

Air travel numbers are slowly increasing as global travel restrictions are gradually lifted and borders around the world are reopened. Passenger traffic at HIA increased by 381 percent from April 2020 to April 2021, with 976,292 people passing through Qatar's airport. In the same time span, aircraft movement increased by 142%, with 12,541 planes landing at HIA in April of this year. In April, freight movement increased by 70%, with 222,339 tonnes of cargo moving through the airport.

This growth is also evident at HIA, which in 2020 will welcome new airline partners such as Air Canada, Badr Airlines, and Vistara to its network. Qatar's airport, HIA, is now serving 142 destinations with 33 airlines.

In the aftermath of the epidemic, Qatar Airways has continued to rebuild its network, now flying to over 130 locations, with the goal of increasing to over 1,200 weekly flights to over 140 destinations by the end of July 2021. In order to develop global connection and boost air travel, the nation's carrier has been increasing its codeshare partnerships, most recently teaming with JetBlue, Iberia, and LATAM.

“Since commencing operations seven years ago, Hamad International Airport has been a significant element of the Qatar Airways Group's growth and success,” stated His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive. HIA has consistently raised the bar for providing a seamless and distinctive travel experience in our region and around the world, garnering numerous awards, including Best Airport in the Middle East for the past six years. Despite our rapid growth, we have not rested on our laurels and look forward to introducing even more incredible attractions once our expansion is complete.”

“The staff at HIA has been working exceptionally hard over the past seven years to create a world-class airport experience for all, which has allowed us to rise in worldwide airport rankings each year,” said Engr. Badr Mohammed Al Meer, Chief Operating Officer at Hamad International Airport. As seen by our track record, HIA has served millions of travelers over its brief but highly successful existence. We were able to successfully traverse the unique obstacles offered by the pandemic to the aviation industry because to our excellent business continuity strategy, teamwork, and unwavering efforts.

We stayed active throughout the worst months of the global crisis as a result of our adaptive resilience and commitment to service quality, ensuring individuals are reunited with their loved ones and crucial supplies and cargo are delivered. Furthermore, our pre-existing business continuity plan assured that the execution of our expansion project was not jeopardized,” said Engr. Al Meer.

The airport is now in Phase A of its development project, which is expected to be finished in 2022, just in time for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022TM. The first phase is expected to boost the terminal's capacity to around 58 million passengers per year. After the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022TM, Phase B will begin, increasing HIA's capacity to more than 60 million passengers per year. HIA's expansion intends to improve the passenger experience by streamlining processes, such as reducing connecting times, and by partnering with Qatar Duty Free to provide new retail and dining opportunities.

The passenger experience at HIA was not only unaffected by the pandemic, but was actually improved as a result of the health crisis, demonstrating the airport's understanding of changing passenger needs. To improve its safe operations, the airport quickly introduced WHO-approved health and safety procedures as well as cutting-edge technology. Contactless temperature measurement is possible with smart solutions like Smart Screening Helmets, as well as HIA's fully autonomous disinfection robots, which have improved airport operations by effectively eradicating the bulk of infectious germs. UVC disinfection tunnels clean inbound luggage from arriving passengers, while C2 technology allows transferring passengers to pass through security checks without taking their electronic gadgets out of their bags, ensuring a safe passenger experience.

HIA's own teams built an automated facial detection system employing computer vision and artificial intelligence as part of its homegrown technology to ensure that all of its employees wore masks. Touchless capabilities have also been implemented at important touchpoints such as self-check-in, self-bag-drop, and terminal elevators.

In the past year, Qatar's airport has maintained and improved its operations, and these accomplishments have been recognized by important international organisations. HIA was the first airport in the Middle East and Asia to receive a 5-Star COVID-19 Airport Safety Rating from Skytrax in 2020, demonstrating the airport's commitment to rapid adoption of new health and safety measures. HIA is also the first entity in the world to receive independent certification from the British Standards Institution (BSI) for its implementation of COVID-19 Aviation Health Safety Protocols, as well as one of the first airports in the world to receive BSI's ISO 22301:2012 Business Continuity Management System Certification, demonstrating the airport's resilience in the face of disruption.

Qatar's airport was recertified by BSI's Asset Management System (AMS) ISO 55001:2014 in 2021. Since 2018, the airport has maintained the three-year re-certification, which reflects HIA's approach to successful asset and infrastructure management.

Following a rigorous review of the airport's Information Security Management System by Bureau Veritas, HIA was also awarded the ISO/IEC 27001:2013 accreditation. The ISO/IEC 27001:2013 Information Security Management System accreditation is internationally recognized and demonstrates HIA's commitment to using industry best practices to maintain and develop its information security system.

Furthermore, Qatar's airport has risen in rank as Skytrax's Best Airport in the World over the duration of its operations, and was named the "Third Best Airport in the World" by Skytrax in 2020.

HIA Qatar Press Release (source and cover picture)