Qatar Aviation Services The First To Join IATA Environmental Program For Ground Handlers

Qatar Airways

IATA/ICAO Code:

QR/QTR

Airline Type:

Full Service Carrier

Hub(s):

Doha Hamad International Airport

Year Founded:

1993

Alliance:

oneworld

CEO:

Akbar Al Baker

Country:

Qatar

Qatar Aviation Services (QAS) is a subsidiary of the Qatar Airways Group. On Friday, it announced that is has become the first ground handling agency in the world to join the International Air Transport Association's (IATA) newly extended environmental Assessment Programme (IEnvA).

The extended IEnvA builds on the experience from IATA's airline assessment program and provides a framework for ground handlers to achieve environmental sustainability across all operations. The Chief Executive Officer of Qatar Airways Group, Akbar al Baker, commented on the next step for QAS and ground handlers overall, in terms of sustainability work and accreditation,

"I am proud to lead the efforts to create a sustainable aviation industry. Environmental sustainability awareness across the entire organisation is critical to the success of Qatar Airways Group. Through IEnvA, Qatar Aviation Services will be able to demonstrate the value of environmental compliance and ensure sustainability in its operations.”

Qatar Aviation Services hangar interior with GSE

The program provides a framework for environmental assessment and reporting. Photo: Qatar Aviation Services

Willie Walsh, Director General of IATA, also expressed his thoughts on welcoming a new chapter for ground handling operators in the IEnvA system,

“We’re delighted to count Qatar Aviation Services as the first ground handler to join the newly extended IATA’s IEnvA programme. Sustainability is a critical challenge for our industry. By taking proactive steps to measure their impacts and address them throughout their operations with IEnvA, QAS and Qatar Airways Group will back their sustainability achievements with the most comprehensive global standard environmental certification available in the industry”.

What is the IEnvA, and who is signed up?

IATA's environmental assessment is a voluntary program focused on independently assessing and improving the sustainability performance of airlines (and now ground handling service providers). The assessment is, according to IATA, based on principles in compliance with environmental obligations and accreditation and demonstrates equivalency to the ISO 14001: 2015 environmental management systems standard.

There are four categories that airlines can be assessed on:

CORE - flight operations and corporate activities
CF - catering activities
GH - ground handling activities
MRO - maintenance, repair, and overhaul services

Initially, airlines receive a Stage 1 certification which is an intermediary step on the road to Stage 2 standards. The latter represents the highest level of IEnvA compliance. Thus far, six out of the 28 airlines registered for the program have achieved Stage 2 certification, meaning they are demonstrating "ongoing environmental performance improvement."

A Qatar Airways Airbus A350 aircraft departing.

Qatar Airways the airline achieved Stage 2 accreditation in the program in 2017. Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying.

Qatar Airways achieved Stage 2 accreditation in 2017 as the first carrier in the Middle East to do so. The other airlines in this category are Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, Air New Zealand, Etihad Airways, Finnair, Icelandair, and Turkish Airlines. Stage 2 accreditation lasts for five years before it expires. The environmental commitment of Qatar Airways is thus up for review in the program before the end of the year.

More on QAS

Qatar Aviation Services was established in 2000 and is headquartered at Hamad International Airport (HIA) in Doha. Pre-pandemic, it handled 225,000 flights per year and 2.2 million tonnes of cargo, delivering services to 33 airlines.