Qatar Airways is celebrating 10 years serving Australia this month with some amazing fare deals to Europe's top destinations. Bookings are open from December 3 until December 31, 2019, and return fares (Economy Class) include Sydney to Rome from $1,189*, Melbourne to Athens from $1,279*, Adelaide to Paris from $1,219* and Perth to Dublin from $1,129*. And it's amazing to look back at where the airline has come from in such a short time. But going further back in time Qatar Airways took a very conservative approach to its growth starting with one Airbus A310 and one Boeing 767 and 75 staff on November 22, 1993. Operations began on January 20, 1994, and the first services were to Amman in Jordan in May of that year. By April 1995 the network included destinations such as Abu Dhabi, Bangkok, Cairo, Dubai, Khartoum, Kuwait, Madras, Manila, Muscat, Sharjah, Taipei, Tokyo, and Trivandrum. To start with the airline used leased aircraft for its considered expansion but in 1998 it placed a firm order with Airbus for six Airbus A320s. However, with the basis of a solid airline proven, in 2001 Qatar Airways became Airbus’s ninth customer for the A380 with an order for two and two options. But that was just a taste of what was to come. At the 2003 Paris Air Show, Qatar Airways placed an order with Airbus valued at US$5.1 billion for 18 aircraft and in the same year it became the first airline to be audited under the new IATA operational safety audit (IOSA) program. In 2007 the airline stamped itself as major global player with an order for 80 Airbus A350 XWBs and 65 Boeing 787s and 27 777s and these are the fleets that have been the bedrock of the airline’s expansion over the past 10 years. With the best from Airbus and Boeing, the airline turned to its in-flight product and again excellence is not negotiable. Qatar Airways has won countless prestigious Skytrax awards for its service and overall product with four Airline of The Year awards and World’s Best Business Class six times. The flagship Qsuite business class, which won the highly-prized Airlineratings.com Best Business Class for 2019 and 2020, is a standout product that sets the airline apart from all others. Qsuite is spacious, private, well-designed and is packed with features designed to make travel more productive and comfortable. The suite is dominated by a giant, 21.5-inch high definition touch screen that is both crisp and responsive. It is complemented by a pair of decent noise-canceling headphones, and the latest version of Qatar Airways’ Oryx system has some 4000 options, including a good selection of movies. Qsuite is being progressively introduced on the airline’s A350s and 777s and a slightly modified version is to be installed in the airline’s A380s and 787s. The airline also excels in catering with premium classes getting restaurant standard delivery and this also sets a higher bar for the service and food in economy. Qatar Airways is totally committed to the Australian market with its flagship A380 aircraft on 3 of its 6 Australia and New Zealand destinations. It was the first airline to introduce the A350 into Australia with services to Adelaide To celebrate its 10 years of service in Australia, Qatar Airways has launched a commemorative inflight menu on all Australian routes to Doha from December to January. The menu celebrates Australia’s rich produce and all ingredients are sourced locally. Ingredients include

• Yellowfin Tuna from Coral Bay, West Australian
• King Prawns from Queensland
• Lamb from Gippsland, Victoria
• Blue Eye-Cod from Portland, Victoria.
• As well as flavorsome fresh berries for a classic Australian Pavlova.
• Shiraz wines from McLaren Vale, South Australia.

Qatar Airways first flight to Australia was to Melbourne on December 6, 2009. Perth was added in July 2010, Sydney in March 2016, Adelaide in May 2016, and finally Canberra in February 2018. Since launching, Qatar Airways has carried over 5.2 million passengers from Australia to Doha and beyond. The airline has also launched the flagship Qsuite on Australian routes this year, and this was also voted World’s Best Business Class by Skytrax, as well as Airlineraings.com. Qatar Airways’ current operations are:

• Melbourne: 7 flights per week - Currently operate A380
• Perth: 7 flights per week - Currently operate A380
• Sydney: 14 flights per week - Currently operate A380 & A350-1000
• Adelaide: 7 flights per week - Currently operate A350-900
• Canberra via Sydney: 7 flights per week - Currently operate A350-1000

Since operations started the airline has carried over 5 million passengers into and out of Australia. And Australian’s most popular destination is London (Heathrow), followed by Athens. *Terms and Conditions apply.