second confirmation
http://www.atwonline.com/indexfull.cfm?newsid=4717
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Qatar looking at 7E7 order, seeks to delay A380 deliveries
Dateline: Tuesday November 09, 2004
Qatar Airways is talking to Boeing about a potential order for up to 60 7E7s, CEO Akbar Al Baker told ATWOnline at the World Travel Market in London.
The carrier, which currently deploys an all-Airbus fleet, is considering the 7E7 because it wants "to stay at the cutting edge of technology," Al Baker said. The purchase would be a combination of firm orders and options and deliveries could start in 2008.
"We're ready to sign an MOU from the moment Boeing crystallizes the definitions of the dash 9," he added. "We will not go for the 7E7 if they [Boeing] don't specify the dash 9. We want to operate a family of aircraft, not just one aircraft type." The 7E7-9 would comprise the bulk of the order, with the airline buying only 8-10 7E7-8s. Boeing has proposed the 7E7-9 as a stretch of the dash 8 capable of carrying 257 passengers in a three-class configuration up to 8,300 nm.
Al Baker also said Qatar Airways has asked Airbus to defer deliveries of its A380s until the second quarter of 2009. Delivery of its first A380-800 was scheduled for 2007, but delays in construction of New Doha International Airport have left the airline "with no other choice than to postpone the delivery," he said. He expects the airport, a $5.5 billion project, to be operational in 2008.
Separately, the carrier said it will launch new routes to Osaka, Melbourne, Tunis, Algiers, Athens and possibly New York next summer as it unveiled a codeshare agreement with bmi. Under the accord, Qatar's QR code will be placed on bmi connecting services from London Heathrow to nine onward bmi destinations in the UK and Europe and on bmi connecting flights from Manchester to three Scottish destinations.--Cathy Buyck
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