Civil Aviation Authority Prepares for National Day

Doha, December 13 (QNA) - Qatar Airways has become a distinctive landmark in the world of civil aviation, as it took its great achievements to occupy prominent position in the field of global air transport. Standing out as tourism and civil facade, Qatar Airways' success is supported by an effective department of civil aviation. Highlighting the achievements of the civil aviation sector in the country leads in the beginning to talk about one of the best and the fastest-growing airline in the world, (The National Carrier) which managed in a short time to grow and expand in its international network and to excel in the provision of unmatched services in the world of aviation, and thus winning the title of best airline in the world. Qatar Airway today operates a modern fleet of 128 aircraft to 133 destinations in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Americas. During the last year Qatar Airways received several international awards, the latest of which were three prizes received during the Skytrax World Travel 2013 awards ceremony, which was held during the Paris Air Show in France last June. It was awarded the prizes of best business class in the world, the best business class lounge in the world and the best service staff in Middle East for the second year in a row. The National Qatari Airline is seeking further expansion in the future where it has placed orders for more than 250 aircraft worth over USD 50 billion for Boeing 787 and 777, Airbus A350, A380 and A320 in addition to , Bombardier executive jets. Qatar Civil Aviation Authority (QCCA) is working to lead the advancement of civil aviation and meteorology sectors and to keep up with the various economic and technological changes taking place in the world. In the field of air transport ratification procedures were completed for the accession to all international air law instruments which the State of Qatar has not yet join. Due to the significant expansion in the activities of Qatar Airways and to the efforts of the General Authority for Civil Aviation, air traffic in Doha International Airport has increased in terms of number of passengers as well as cargo operations, and further growth is expected with the opening of the new Hamad International Airport. The current fiscal year witnessed the signing and initialing a number of air transport agreements in addition to inking several memoranda of understanding on air transport with a number of countries. In the field of air safety QCCA realized several achievement during last year. Of that the completion of amending the civil aviation regulations, the issuance of 21 new licenses for practicing travel business, the issuance of 11 licenses for air cargo agencies and the withdrawal of licenses for five offices did not comply with the QCCA instructions. QCCA also issued dozens of licenses and certificates in the field of aircraft maintenance and engineering, and meanwhile continued implementing the system of airworthiness control. The Meteorology field witnessed many achievements during the last year. In addition to hosting a number of meteorological conferences and workshops, and the active participation in relevant international activities, the Department of Meteorology in QCCA has completed the installation of several monitoring station, including the meteorological monitoring stations in Dukhan, Abu Samra, Ruwais and Hamad International Airport. In the field of air traffic, all the relevant systems and hardware were completely installed in preparation of opening Hamad International Airport, which will be one of the best in the world with a capacity of about 50 million passengers and over two million tonnes of goods per year in addition to 19 thousand square meters of shops, restaurants, halls and parking lots. The project also includes a building for servicing VIPs and official delegations, in addition to other buildings for shipping services, aircraft hangars and other facilities. Qatar Aeronautical College has a leading and important role in supplying the local and Gulf markets with cadres highly qualified in the field of aviation industry. The number of graduates during the past year was 120 graduates, of them 48 graduated from the Department of Commercial Aviation, 33 from the Department of aircraft engineering and maintenance, 33 from the department of flight operations, 2 from the Department of air surveillance and 4 of the Department of Meteorology. (QNA)