IATA AGM 2013: New Doha airport should be ready by end of 2013

Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker said (04-Jun-2013) at a concluding press conference at the IATA annual general meeting in Cape Town that a delay in completing airport lounges is holding up the opening of the new airport at its Doha hub. "We are a full service airline. We don't want to open an airport without lounges," Mr Al Baker says. He adds the initial delay, which involved "a small glitch with special systems" after failing an audit from Qatari civil aviation authorities, has been resolved. Mr Al Baker says he has an internal date with contractors for acceptance, which is before the end of the year. He says the airport will open shortly after it is accepted but does not yet want to provide an exact date. Doha and Qatar Airways were announced on 04-Jun-2013 as the host of the 2014 IATA AGM.