Qatar Airways Celebrates 10 Years of Direct Service to Edinburgh, Scotland

Qatar Airways

Edinburgh Airport and Qatar Airways are celebrating ten years of the airline operating from Scotland’s busiest airport.

The first service between Scotland and Doha, Qatar took place on 28th May 2014 with an initial five weekly flights. It was the first ever direct route between the two countries and carried nearly 90,000 passengers in the first year.

Qatar Airways has since more than doubled its Edinburgh operations, now with 14 flights per week, having carried around 1.4m passengers between Scotland and Qatar over the past decade, with more than 292,000 passengers travelling between Doha and Edinburgh in 2023.

Since its inception, the route has facilitated seamless travel between the countries via Hamad International Airport, named the World’s Best Airport by Skytrax in 2024, providing fantastic onward connectivity through the extensive Qatar Airways network of over 170 destinations beyond Doha. The top five most popular destinations for passengers travelling from Edinburgh are Bangkok, Phuket, Lahore, Doha and Sydney.

The airline’s presence in Scotland has continued to impress travellers with one of the most modern and efficient aircraft fleets in the world, award-winning hospitality and the World’s Best Business Class (Skytrax 2023), Qsuite.

Gordon Dewar, Chief Executive of Edinburgh Airport said:

“To have one of the world’s leading airlines show that longevity and confidence in Scotland is something we should all celebrate, and it’s great to be marking this anniversary with them.

“The service has been immensely popular with passengers and the fact it has gone from a five weekly service to operating up to fourteen times a week just shows the demand that is there for it. That is testament to the airline’s fantastic connectivity and the service it offers.

“We have worked incredibly well with our Qatar Airways colleagues to make the route the success it has become and we look forward to building on these strong foundations to add more growth where possible.”

Eric Odone, Vice President Sales, Europe at Qatar Airways said:

“Qatar Airways is proud of its long-standing relationship with Edinburgh Airport and the people of Scotland. Our regional airport operations are a key part of the Qatar Airways growth strategy as a means of providing more choice and flexibility to as many travellers as possible.

“What started as a route with five weekly flights, has now more than doubled to a twice-daily service, which demonstrates the high level of demand for Qatar Airways’ renowned flight experience, hospitality and connectivity.

“We are honoured to continue taking passengers from Scotland to Doha and beyond to our network of over 170 destinations for many decades to come, as well as playing a role in showcasing Scotland to travellers from abroad.”