Qatar Airways to defer Airbus and Boeing plane deliveries in 2020 and 2021, CEO says

State-owned carrier told Boeing it will replace its 737 Max order with other aircraft

Qatar Airways chief executive says the airlines will lay off close to 20 per cent of its workforce. AP Photo   

Qatar Airways will defer Airbus and Boeing aircraft deliveries due in 2020 and 2021, the airline's chief executive said, as the Covid-19 pandemic saps demand for air travel.

"Quite a lot of them will be deferred, we've already notified Boeing and Airbus that we will not be taking any aeroplanes this year or next year and all the other aircraft that we have on order that was supposed to be delivered to us within the next two or three years will now be pushed back to as long as 8 to 10 years," Akbar Al Baker, Qatar Airways' group chief executive, told the UK's Sky News in an interview on Wednesday.

However, when business picks up and air traffic increases, the airline will bring forward these delayed aircraft deliveries, he said.

Mr Al Baker warned that if Airbus and Boeing do not oblige Qatar Airways' requirements, the carrier will then have to review its long-term business relationship with them.

Qatar Airways, which had placed a firm order for 30 of Boeing's embattled 737 Max 8 narrowbodies, has informed the US plane maker that it no longer requires those aircraft and will replace them with another aircraft model.

"We had bought it for a particular airline in which we had invested and we have withdrawn our investment from that airline, so we will not require any more the 737 Maxs," the executive said, referring to Qatar Airways' purchase of a 49 per cent stake in Air Italy before the Sardinia-based carrier entered liquidation in February.

Qatar Airways is also planning job cuts and salary reductions, according to Mr Al Baker, to deal with the impact of the pandemic. 
"We are going to lay off as little staff as possible, we are going to give salary cuts but it's not going to be permanent," he said.

The Doha-based airline employs more than 46,000 people.

Qatar Airways, which raised its stake in British Airways' parent IAG in February, said it will continue to back IAG as a strategic investment.

"If it is necessary, yes we will inject liquidity into IAG because it is a long-term investment from Qatar Airways," Mr Al Baker said.