Qatar Records 26,425 Flights Following the World Cup

With the end of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA) recorded 26,425 flights through the international airports of Hamad and Doha.

Several Gulf airlines operated shuttle flights to the State of Qatar during the World Cup, in addition to numerous additional flights from other nations, including Lufthansa, Air France, Finnair, and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines in addition to airlines from South America and Africa that operated regular and charter flights to Qatar. Air traffic at Hamad and Doha international airports also experienced a high operational intensity during this time.

QCAA asserts that the Authority's excellent planning allowed for professional and seamless management of the large increase in air traffic. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) decided in March 2022 to establish a Flight Information Region (FIR) and a Search and Rescue Region (SSR) in Doha. As a result, on September 8, 2022, the new airspace created for Qatar was activated, and the first phase of the Doha Flight Information Region (Doha FIR) was launched.

In order to ensure a smoother flow and higher safety, the capacity has been expanded to around 100 flights per hour and the number of air routes arriving at and departing from Qatar has increased to (17) unique routes.

Aircraft waiting areas, which were used at peak times, have also been expanded to accommodate more aircraft during landing. In order to increase takeoff and landing capacity during the World Cup, landing and takeoff processes were divided across two runways (Hamad International Airport and Doha International Airport). This allowed for the option of performing three takeoffs and landings simultaneously. In order to guarantee that all activities are carried out safely and efficiently, tests using air traffic management simulators have been performed.
 

The first of its type in the Middle East, Qatar's Air Traffic Flow Management (ATFM) system has helped to organize the arrival and departure of airplanes to Doha in a timely manner. The SLOT Departure Time system, which also helped to control air traffic during the World Cup's busiest periods, also gave neighboring nations access to an electronic portal that displayed the hours at which flights were leaving from their nation.

To make sure that there is no uncertainty in air traffic management throughout the competition, the QCAA Air Navigation Department also created alternative operational contingency plans.

Visitors will have a distinctive travel experience thanks to these initiatives, which also aim to highlight Qatar's impressive progress in the civil aviation industry. They also show off the high caliber of services the nation's civil aviation system offers, making a particular impression during the amazing World Cup in which Qatar amazed the entire world.