El Prat’s leading airline consolidates its position and bolsters trans-European traffic.
This partnership is the first between the two airlines and follows Qatar’s incorporation into oneworld alliance in 2013.
Vueling and Qatar Airways have signed an interline agreement that will enable Qatar’s premier airline to increase the number of passengers to Europe, as well as strengthen Vueling’s Barcelona hub and boost trans-European traffic thanks to long-haul connections. El Prat airport is Vueling’s main hub where the Spanish company has 38% market share, with direct flights to 130 destinations and up to 11,000 connections across Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
This represents the second major long-haul alliance Vueling has entered into in the last three months, following a codesharing agreement established withBritish Airwaysat the end of June.
“This agreement with Vueling is the first step in offering our clients seamless access in and out of Europe via El Prat-Barcelona”, saysAkbar Al Baker, CEO of Qatar Airways.Álex Cruz, CEO of Vueling, also showed his satisfaction.“Over the last five years Vueling has been the growth engine at El Prat Airport.Thanks to this new agreement, we can boost long-haul traffic, placing Barcelona’s airport in the top tier in Europe.”“The quality of Vueling’s product and service enables the airline to meet, the high expectations demanded by Qatar Airway’s passengers.”, he added.
Barcelona, September 19th, 2014
