After a landmark deal with Boeing, Qatar Airways said it was still open to ordering widebodies from Airbus.
“There will always be a chance for another order from Airbus,” said Qatar CEO Badr Al-Meer in an interview with Bloomberg TV on May 21, 2025.
The executive added that, for now, the company is focussing on finalising its agreement with Boeing for up to 210 widebody jets. He said that the order “does not mean that Airbus is out of the game”.
He added that Qatar's narrowbodies will continue to be Airbus, with it set to receive 50 A321neo aircraft commencing next year and continues to receive its A350-1000.
In a separate panel hosted on Bloomberg TV, Al-Meer said: “It was a very close call between all of them [the OEMs]. It was leaning towards Airbus at a certain stage, but it went to Boeing at the end.”
He added that Boeing offered Qatar a “better commercial and technical proposal”.
“The reason for the order was to cover the strategy of Qatar Airways until 2045 and we will start receiving the aircraft from May 2029,” he continued. “This ticks the boxes for us to continue our growth, to expand our fleet and network, as well as retire some of our older aircraft in our fleet.”
He said the company is not worried about overcapacity with its high load factors and strong demand for its product.
Qatar will be present at this year's Paris Air Show and could provide the stage for an order with the French OEM.