As the World Cup fast approaches, British Airways will use its A380 from London Heathrow to Doha, replacing Qatar Airways on the route. It will supplement BA's existing London Gatwick-Doha service. It means that, when partner Qatar Airways is included, the pair have up to 9x daily nonstops from London to the Qatari capital.
Qatar Airways has reduced flights at Doha Hamad International Airport by 7% for the global event, temporarily becoming more of a point-to-point operator and seemingly enabling many other operators to add extra services. And Doha International Airport, shut to airlines in 2014, has reopened to a growing array of operators. More changes will undoubtedly happen.
BA to use the A380 to Doha
While not bookable when writing, the A380 to Doha appears in BA's timetable. It'll operate 1x daily between November 18th and January 8th using Qatar Airways' Heathrow slots.
It seems that BA is helping out its partner and fellow oneworld member by increasing seats for sale, presumably because of Qatar Airways' continuing aircraft shortage. From January 9th on, it'll revert to Qatar Airways.
BA's operation is scheduled as follows, with all times local. Notice the 8h 15m ground time in Doha:
- London Heathrow to Doha: BA123, 21:20-07:05+1 (6h 45m block time)
- Doha to London Heathrow: BA122, 15:20-19:50 (7h 30m)
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Far more seats for sale per flight
BA123/BA122 will replace QR16/QR15, operated by either 354-seat or 358-seat 777-300ERs. These have no first class seats but 42 in business and 312 or 316 in economy.
The shift to BA's A380s means 469 seats for sale, up to a third more than with Qatar Airways. There are 14 first class seats, 97 in business (+131%), 55 in premium economy, and 303 in economy (-4%). Clearly, BA will have a far more premium offering than the Qatar flag carrier's 777-300ERs.
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Up to 9x daily London flights
Looking at randomly chosen December 1st, the following is available. Note that given BA is 'only' replacing Qatar Airways, the market hasn't seen an increase in flights.
Notice how close some times are so close together, such as arriving at Heathrow five minutes apart in the early morning. It seems inefficient, but it helps to increase capacity at peak times and is, of course, dependent on Heathrow slots.
Airport |
Departure time from London |
Arrival time in London |
Airline |
Flight |
Aircraft |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gatwick |
05:45 |
British Airways |
BA2032 |
777-200ER |
|
Heathrow |
06:20 |
Qatar Airways |
QR9 |
777-300ER |
|
Heathrow |
06:25 |
Qatar Airways |
QR11 |
A380 |
|
Heathrow |
08:05 |
Qatar Airways |
QR6 |
777-300ER |
|
Heathrow |
08:35 |
Qatar Airways |
QR10 |
A380 |
|
Gatwick |
10:45 |
Qatar Airways |
QR329 |
787-8 |
|
Heathrow |
12:15 |
Qatar Airways |
QR3 |
A380 |
|
Gatwick |
12:15 |
Qatar Airways |
QR330 |
787-8 |
|
Heathrow |
13:20 |
Qatar Airways |
QR7 |
777-300ER |
|
Gatwick |
14:05 |
British Airways |
BA2033 |
777-200ER |
|
Heathrow |
14:15 |
Qatar Airways |
QR4 |
A380 |
|
Heathrow |
14:55 |
Qatar Airways |
QR8 |
777-300ER |
|
Heathrow |
17:30 |
Qatar Airways |
QR1 |
777-300ER |
|
Heathrow |
18:55 |
Qatar Airways |
QR12 |
777-300ER |
|
Heathrow |
19:50 |
British Airways |
BA122 |
A380 |
|
Heathrow |
20:30 |
Qatar Airways |
QR2 |
777-300ER |
|
Heathrow |
21:20 |
British Airways |
BA123 |
A380 |
|
Heathrow |
22:00 |
Qatar Airways |
QR5 |
777-300ER |
What do you think of it all? Let us know in the comments.