– paves way for Qatar Airways to operate here

QATAR and Guyana, this week, signed onto an air services agreement which can see popular carrier, Qatar Airways, operating here in the near future.

Guyana signed the air service agreement with the state of Qatar on Tuesday, September 24, 2019. According to a press statement from the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), the agreement is aimed at promoting and facilitating airlines of Guyana and Qatar to operate any number of services between both countries as well as beyond to any third country, with no restrictions on capacity, frequency, aircraft type and routing.

This agreement will create new opportunities for air carriers, enable greater movement of people and goods between the two countries, and benefit the economies and businesses.
The agreement was signed by President of Qatar Civil Aviation Authority, Abdulla Nasser Turki Al Subaey and Director General of the GCAA, Col. (Ret’d) Egbert Fields. The signing of the agreement was done on the sidelines of the International Civil Aviation Organisation

(ICAO)’s 40th General Assembly in Montreal, Canada.
Witnessing the signing were Qatar’s Minister of Transport and Communications, Jassim bin Saif Al Sulaiti, Chairman of the GCAA Board of Directors, Lt. Col. (Ret’d) Lawrence London and other members of both delegations.

The agreement complements the more than 50 air services agreements Guyana has established with other ICAO states for the development of the air link among states. It is a further step in the realisation of a strong and reliable gulf carrier operating flights to Georgetown.

Qatar Airways, which is headquartered in Qatar, is one of the world’s largest airline, operating a hub-and-spoke network, linking over 172 international destinations across the world, using a fleet of more than 250 aircraft. The cargo arm of the airline– Qatar Airways Cargo– is the world’s third largest international cargo carrier.

In the coming months, a delegation from Qatar will be visiting Guyana to explore business opportunities in the aviation sector, establish a presence in Guyana and to strengthen the Caribbean and Latin America network.

Qatar has already expressed an interest in entering Guyana’s oil market. It was reported that Qatar Petroleum, a state-owned public corporation responsible for the oil and gas industry in Qatar, entered into an agreement with Total for a share of exploration and production rights in two blocks offshore Guyana.

Under the agreement signed on Monday, Qatar Petroleum will hold 40 per cent of Total’s existing 25 per cent participating interest in the Orinduik block and 40 per cent of Total’s existing 25 per cent participating interest in the neighbouring Kanuku block.
Guyana has attracted attention from several global air carriers in recent years and as the country’s petroleum industry evolves, a number of international companies have expressed an interest in investing in the economy.

American carrier, JetBlue, had announced that it will be operating daily flights between Guyana and New York from April 2020. Early this year, US carrier, American Airlines had also started operating in Guyana.