Qatar Airways has announced that it will introduce its Boeing 787s on services from Doha to Copenhagen, Oslo, and Stockholm Arlanda.

The flights commence on 1st August to Stockholm, and 1st September to both Copenhagen and Oslo.

Flights will operate daily.

Keep an eye on our 787 Routes Page for destinations you can see the Dreamliner.

Qatar Airways has announced it will commence flights from its Doha base to Philadelphia, Addis Ababa, and Clark in the Philippines.

The link to Philadelphia will be flown by a Boeing 777-300 aircraft, and comes after previous rumours suggested Atlanta, Boston or Detroit would be the next US destination. The route is expected to start in summer 2014.

The route to Clark – an alternative to Manila Airport in the Philippines – is in competition with Emirates who operate a daily service from Dubai.

Doha’s new Hamad International Airport will open its gates for the first time on 1 April.

Replacing the cramped and outdated Doha International Airport which suffers from limited space and a single runway, the new facility will gradually be expanded as more phases of construction are worked on.

When it opens in April, 12 international airlines will transfer to the new airport.

Qatar Airways will transfer its entire operation to the new Doha airport in the second half of 2013 once extra terminal facilities such as lounges have been completed.

Hamad International Airport has two parallel runways, and a central terminal with various concourses. It will eventually have a capacity for 50 million passengers per year.

Qatar Airways has confirmed the date its new Boeing 787 Dreamliners will begin serving London Heathrow.

A daily flight will be operated from Doha to Heathrow from 13th December, 2013. It arrives at Heathrow at 1105, and departs at 1505.

Qatar are currently flying their aircraft, which was delivered recently, on short flights to Dubai and Kuwait to aid in crew familiarisation. London will be the first long haul destination the type flies on.

To keep up to date with the routes airlines will be flying their 787 Dreamliners on, check out the Boeing 787 Routes page, which is updated regularly!

As Ethiopian Airlines took delivery of its first Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft this week – only the third airline to do so – it has outlined plans to expand its fleet and home base dramatically over the coming years.

The airline has 14 aircraft due for delivery this year, including more 787s, as well as Boeing 737-800s, Dash 8 Q400s, and Boeing 777 freighters.

Ethiopian has also announced it is considering purchasing either 737 Max or Airbus A320neo aircraft as part of its intentions to increase its fleet to 120 aircraft by 2025.

To complement these plans, Ethiopian Airlines is hoping to make its Addis Ababa Airport base a worldwide hub along the lines of those in Dubai and Doha, where passengers would arrive from one side of the world and transfer to flights heading to the other side of the world.

Ethiopian’s unique selling point is its strong coverage of emerging markets in Africa, which the Middle Eastern carriers have been slower to reach.

Whether this happens is still very much up in the air, as most consider Addis Ababa to be inferior to many Western and Middle Eastern hub airports, and Ethiopian’s existing fleet of Boeing 757 and 767 aircraft are starting to look long in the teeth.

The Middle East – particularly around the United Arab Emirates – has become a major aviation hub, particularly with east-west travel and the rise of the big carriers such as Emirates and Qatar Airways. But what’s the difference between the many airports from an aviation enthusiast’s perspective? Here are some observations and highlights…

Dubai
By far the busiest and most profitable airport in the region for the spotter. Dubai is a large airport, home base for Emirates, and visited by major airlines from around the world. It is still frequented by some older and Russian jets, and the constant sunshine makes it great for the photographer. BUT, you’ll have to splash out for the rooftop area of the Sheraton Deira Hotel, as there aren’t many good vantage points around the airport. Always be careful, as spotters still get unwelcome attention from authorities if they are seen brandishing cameras and binoculars in public.

Sharjah
Not too far from Dubai, Sharjah has turned itself into the region’s main low-cost airport. The days of smoking Russian aircraft and older generation Western jets are largely gone now, but you can still see the occasional interesting movement.

The airport still has airside tours available, but they are now quite expensive. Book through the airport’s website: http://www.shj-airport.gov.ae/

Doha
Doha is the rising star in the region. Its infrastructure is still quite basic, but it is expanding at quite a pace. Its home airline is Qatar Airways, who have a mixed medium- and long-haul fleet which flies in a similar wave pattern to Emirates at Dubai.

The only real places to spot here are inside the terminal, which has some windows at either end for passengers.

Bahrain
Home of Gulf Air, Bahrain is one of the older airports in the region, but is undergoing significant upgrades and expansion. It is served by a large number of passenger and cargo airlines, but not nearly as busy as Dubai or Doha.

Spotting is quite difficult. One option is the park near the end of Runway 30, or the waterside area near the end of runway 12.

Kuwait
This airport is also undergoing a massive terminal expansion. Home to Kuwait Airways, it is not as busy as the other Middle East airports mentioned, but still worth a look.  There are some views close to the runway ends, and within the terminal.

Things will improve with the new terminal when it opens.
Abu Dhabi
The second largest airport in the UAE, and served by home airline Etihad’s large fleet. Like other nearby airports, it operates a wave pattern of flights – many of which arrive late at night.

Spotting is possible from the roads at either end of the runways, but this can often arouse suspicion. Inside the terminal, the cafe area before security has views over the aprons and runways. Just be careful flashing equipment around with security present.

Qatar Airways‘ first Boeing 787s are in the final assembly stage. I saw them on the production line on my tour of the Boeing Everett factory in February, resplendent with stickers showing the airline’s logo.

The picture here (credit Qatar Airways) is of the aircraft, released by the airline.

Qatar’s Boeing 787′s are due to enter the fleet this summer, and the airline has announced their route plans for the type.

Initially the 787 will fly to short-haul regional destinations in the Gulf from the airline’s Doha base, giving crews the chance to get familiar with the aircraft. It will then enter service on the flagship Doha – London Heathrow route.

For those of you who can’t wait, the aircraft will be part of the static display at this year’s Farnborough Air Show, in July.

Boeing have announced that their 787 is to go on a world tour that lasts 6 months and takes in many different countries.

The purpose of the tour is to raise public awareness, and in particular to demonstrate the aircraft to potential customers and those airlines that are awaiting their first deliveries of the type.

The tour will involve the third production aircraft ZA003 (N787BX) in a special livery, and with a lavish interior designed to show off the capabilities of the aircraft from a passenger experience.

The tour will begin on 4th December when the aircraft reaches Beijing . It will go on to visit Guangzhou and Haikou. Then, between 11-16 December, it will visit African destinations including Addis Ababa and Nairobi.

Between 16-19 December, the aircraft will visit the Middle East and demonstrate to Qatar Airways in Doha.

Further stops will be announced. Keep an eye on Randy’s Journal, who I credit for the info on this page. With any luck we’ll see the aircraft at a number of European airports, and more of the US and Canada. For official news, check out the Boeing website for the tour http://www.newairplane.com/787/dreamtour/

A quick note about Doha Airport for spotters.

The terminal is still quite small here, so until the larger facility opens these facts are correct.

Once airside, the transit lounge/departures area have large windows overlooking the ramp. During daylight hours you wont have any problems logging any movements as the runway is pretty close. Some remoter stands may be a problem.

At each end of the terminal is a vantage point which looks over a little bit more of the parking areas.

As most passengers experience a bus ride to their aircraft, this is another opportunity to note a few aircraft parked away from the terminal.