UAE and Egypt resume first Qatar flights since 2017
An Air Arabia Airbus A320 aircraft is seen taxiing at Qatar's Hamad International Airport on Monday. AFP
The first direct flights since 2017 between Qatar and the UAE and Egypt took to the skies on Monday, following the end of a regional crisis. The first commercial flight from Qatar to Egypt in three and a half years, an EgyptAir service to Cairo, took off from windswept Doha airport.
It was followed shortly after by the arrival of an Air Arabia flight from Sharjah in the UAE. On Thursday, Air Arabia had announced the resumption of directs flights between Sharjah and Doha.
Customers can now book their direct flights between Sharjah and Doha by visiting Air Arabia’s website, by calling the call centre or through travel agencies.
Ensuring the highest standards of safety at every step of the journey by following all health and safety protocols, Air Arabia has also added to the convenience and confidence of passengers by introducing free COVID-19 insurance coverage.
The insurance is automatically included as part of the booking and no additional documents are required from passengers. The resumption of flights from Doha to Cairo will simplify travel for the large contingent of Egyptians living in Qatar.
As many as 300,000 Egyptians call Qatar home, according to official statistics, but many were unable to travel home during the crisis. A Qatar Airways plane was due to also make the trip to Cairo later on Monday.
Flights between Doha and Saudi Arabia, which has also opened its land border to Qatar, resumed on Jan.11.
Mustafa Ahmed, 38, an Egyptian technical engineer, said he was "very happy." "With direct flights, life will be easier, especially for families and children, avoiding the torment of changing airports and planes and waiting for hours for transit flights," he said.
Egyptians in Qatar work in a number of sectors including education, healthcare and engineering.
