Qatar Airways posted a 28 percent jump in annual net profit to a record $2.15 billion on Monday, days after sealing a major Boeing deal during US President Donald Trump’s visit.
“These record-breaking results are a testament to the hard work, skill and dedication of teams across all of Qatar Airways Group,” said the state-owned carrier’s chief executive, Badr Mohammed Al-Meer.
Qatar Airways Cargo, the group’s air freight service, saw revenues increase by 17 percent on the year before, the airline said.
“We have also successfully implemented strategic partnerships throughout the industry, in order for the Group to remain agile in the face of ever-shifting world events,” Al-Meer added in his statement.
In Doha during a multi-stop tour of the Gulf last week, Trump hailed a “record” Qatar Airways order for 160 planes from Boeing as he signed a number of deals alongside Qatar’s emir.
The White House later said Qatar Airways would honour a “$96 billion agreement to acquire up to 210 American-made Boeing 787 Dreamliner and 777X aircraft powered by GE Aerospace engines”.
The order is comprised of 130 Dreamliner planes and 30 Boeing 777-9 jets, which are still being certified by the US Federal Aviation Administration.
The order also includes options for 50 additional 787 and 777X planes, Boeing and Qatar Airways said in statements.
In February, Australian authorities approved a Qatar Airways acquisition of a 25 percent stake in troubled airline Virgin Australia, injecting foreign competition into the country’s aviation sector dominated by national carrier Qantas.
In August last year, Qatar Airways acquired a 25 percent stake in Airlink, an independent Southern African carrier.
In 2024, the Qatari airline reported a $1.7 billion net profit following an annual increase of 39 percent, another record. —- Agence France-Presse
