Qatar Airways on Monday announced it was expanding its service to India, launching a flight to the central Indian city of Nagpur. Nagpur is Qatar Airway's sixth destination in India and the move was in line with the airline's plans to expand its global reach, Qatar Airway's Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Bakar said at a news conference in New Delhi. "Nagpur is underserved by both domestically and internationally by air carriers," said Al Bakar. "But this extremely resource-rich region ... offers tremendous business opportunities as it is also one of India's largest inland container transport hubs," he said. Qatar Airlines currently operates 30 flights a week to five destinations in India. Al Bakar said his airline was keen to raise its profile in India, where air travel has grown more than 15 percent annually in recent years. He praised India for opening up its skies, but said further liberalization was needed. The airline will initially fly three times a week from Doha, Qatar's capital, to Nagpur.
