Qatar Airways' Third Gateway to Malaysia

Qatar Airways held a press conference in Doha to celebrate the launch of its inaugural flight to Langkawi, Malaysia. The four-times-weekly flights to Langkawi will be operated by a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, expanding to five-times weekly from October 27 this year.

Hosting the event, Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, Akbar Al Baker highlighted the award-winning airline’s robust expansion plans, as well as its commitment to bringing more visitors to Malaysia and to connecting Langkawi to its extensive global network via the award-winning Hamad International Airport in Doha.

“Langkawi is both an important tourist destination and a growing conference and exhibition center, which is becoming increasingly popular with international visitors. This new gateway will offer our Malaysian passengers even more convenience and enhanced connectivity to an extensive choice of destinations on our global route network. We invite all our global passengers to experience the ‘Jewel of Kedah’, and we look forward to welcoming you all on board,” he said.

A Qatar Airways press release also quotes the General Manager, Airline Marketing of Malaysia Airports, Mohamed Sallauddin Mat Sah, who said that “we take immense pleasure in welcoming Qatar Airways to Langkawi International Airport (LGK) who has been our airline partner at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport for the past 18 years. Early last year, Qatar Airways began flying direct to Penang International Airport from Doha. This new flight to LGK, which is an extended route via Penang, will definitely be a great addition to the international airlines operating at LGK. Being the first Middle Eastern carrier to operate at LGK, this long-haul flight will expand the tourism opportunities in Malaysia, particularly in Langkawi, The Jewel of Kedah. We look forward to creating many more memorable moments with Qatar Airways.”

Langkawi is fast becoming an internationally recognized tourist destination, seeing tremendous growth in its number of visitors, having grown almost 10% since 2013. The tropical paradise holds the status of UNESCO Global Geopark, one of only 64 in the world. It also provides various MICE (meetings, incentives, conferencing and exhibitions) facilities.