The first Qatar Airways flight in over five years landed at Canberra Airport just before 9am on Tuesday, December 2, arriving about 20 minutes behind schedule from Doha via Melbourne. The resumption makes Qatar the second international carrier serving the ACT's airport.
Canberra Airport Group chief executive Stephen Byron said forward bookings for the airline's first 12 months out of Canberra are 30 per cent higher than when it first launched in 2018. He noted that Canberra's population has grown by 23 per cent, or 100,000 people, since then, and the economy has grown at the fastest rate in Australia over the past 15 years.
Qatar Airways ceased flights to Canberra at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic after several years of service. The airline had originally planned to resume flights in late 2022, but the return was delayed multiple times. It announced its return in October 2025, offering promotional fares to encourage bookings.
Canberra Airport head of aviation Michael Thomson, who took the flight from Melbourne to Canberra, said passengers were excited, with a cheer when the plane landed. ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr welcomed the resumption, noting Canberrans' high propensity for international travel and expressing confidence in the service's longevity.
Barr pointed out that Qatar would lose rights to a second daily service out of Melbourne if it stopped flying to Canberra, providing a strong incentive to continue. Qatar Airways connects to over 170 destinations from Doha and accepts frequent flyer memberships from Qantas and Virgin Australia.
