Qatar Air Sounds Defiant Note Over Sanctions, Vows Expansion - Bloomberg:
"Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker struck a defiant tone in the face of the continued sanctions against his country, calling them a “challenge to civilization” that has only strengthened his resolve to push for more growth and add destinations.
Speaking at the annual tourism fair in Berlin, Al Baker blasted the measures as an assault on his nation, saying “we’re not a grocery shop, we’re a sovereign country.” Rather than curb growth last year, the embargo had the opposite effect, the CEO said as he announced higher frequencies to places like Barcelona and Madrid and a new twice-daily service to London Gatwick.
At the same time the restrictions imposed by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt last June will push Qatar Air to a “very large loss” for the year ending April 1, the CEO said, adding that the carrier will need to find new streams of financing to survive since it has no access to the equivalent of U.S. Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. That might include an equity injection, something the government is prepared for, he said."
'via Blog this'
No comments:
Post a Comment