Qatar Airways was founded in November 1993 and started flying in January 1994. Its real beginning came in 1997, when the Qatari government relaunched it under chief executive Akbar Al Baker. His job was to build a world-class airline. From a handful of aircraft it grew at extraordinary speed. Doha sits between Europe, Asia, and Africa, so the airline built a global super-connector network, where travelers change planes between continents.
In 2013 it became the first Gulf mega-carrier to join a global alliance, oneworld, whose airlines share routes and frequent-flyer perks. It moved into the purpose-built Hamad International Airport in 2014, its new home base. Qatar Airways was the world's first operator of the Airbus A350 in January 2015. In 2017 it stunned rivals with Qsuite, the first business class with sliding privacy doors.
Qsuite also offered double beds. The airline kept flying during the 2017-2021 blockade by its Gulf neighbors, rerouting its whole network. It was the official airline of the 2022 FIFA World Cup at home. Skytrax has named it airline of the year a record number of times. It holds shares in IAG, Cathay Pacific, LATAM, and others, and runs one of the largest cargo businesses from Doha.