JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2018 81
is a long established and admired
operator based in the fastest growing
aviation region in the world. Also,
British Airways, LATAM and Cathay,
like Qatar, are all members of the
oneworld alliance which means they
have already been working together
know you’re always being served
by grandmothers on American
airlines.”
This brought a sharp response
from the US Association of Flight
Attendants and the Air Line Pilots
Association, which accused him of
reaching “a new low”.
That, however, is a passing spat
compared with more serious issues.
In June, neighbors Saudi Arabia,
the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain,
Egypt, Yemen and The Maldives
cut diplomatic ties and imposed a
partial embargo on Qatar, alleging
Qatari support for terrorism. Qatar
Airways is now banned from flying
into those countries.
News of action came as the
world’s airline leaders were
meeting for their annual general
meeting in Cancun, Mexico (al
Baker was there but left hurriedly
to return home to Doha) where
International Air Transport
Association Director General
Alexandre de Juniac immediately
urged the Gulf countries that had
cut ties with Qatar to restore air
links, warning of major travel
disruptions.
“Of course, we accept that
countries have the right to close
their borders. But connectivity with
Qatar must be restored as quickly
as possible,” he said.
The appeal was to no avail and
efforts by the International Civil
Aviation Organization (ICAO) to
mediate and find a resolution to the
dispute have so far failed.
It is an ongoing issue. Arelatively closely.
What impact Qatar’s presence as
third largest shareholder will have on
Cathay remains to be seen, but many
believe it will bring interesting times.
As analyst at research firm Crucial
Perspective Corrine Png put it: “Qatar
Airways faces greater pressure to
broaden its global footprint and a need
to demonstrate its financial strength.”
The two airlines should benefit by
feeding traffic into their respective
networks. She believes Qatar is likely
to be a vocal shareholder and will seek
to influence Cathay’s business strategy,
which could complicate its turnaround
efforts.
“Shareholder meetings are going to
get complicated for Cathay,” she said.
So far, there has been no comment
from Cathay management or from the
other principal Cathay shareholder Air
China.
The potential for lively board
meetings in Hong Kong won’t surprise
anyone. Al Baker is renowned for his
outspoken views. He has repeatedly
and publicly attacked either Boeing or
Airbus over delivery delays and other
issues, threatening to cancel orders if
they don’t meet his demands. Earlier
this year he sparked a furore in the US
after calling American carriers “crap”.
Speaking in Dublin at the
inauguration of a new flight between
Doha and the Irish capital he touted
the “award-winning service from our
international cabin crew”, and went
on to add: “By the way, the average
age of my cabin crew is only 26 years.
So, there is no need for you to travel
on these crap American carriers... YouQatar Airways has become the
third largest shareholder in
Cathay Pacific.ROB FINLAYSON‘Shareholder
meetings are
going to get
complicated’.
CORRINE PNG