Late last month Qatar Airways (whose business class was named best in the world by one of those innumerable associations most of us have never heard of) took delivery of its newest Boeing 777-200. It's a mastodon of a plane, the Viagra of the skies: It can fly non-stop for 17 hours and seat up to 440 people.
Qatar Airlines wants to be a mastodon carrier, too: It has 67 aircraft today, but looking to have 110 by 2013, by which time it will have moved to its new Doha Airport .
Every plane in the fleet is named after a geographic location in Qatar. Except for the 777 Qatar Airways added to its fleet last month. It's called "Gaza."
“I know many of us have been deeply touched by the civilian deaths in the recent bombing of Gaza," Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker said. "Qatar Airways wants to recognize that innocent people, and in particular large numbers of children, were killed in these bomb attacks, and naming our latest aircraft 'Gaza' is a symbolic gesture to commemorate and honor these victims. The name ‘Gaza’ will fly around the world on Qatar Airways and spread a message of peace and humanity."
Needless to say, Qatar Airways does not fly to Israel's Ben Gurion Airport. "Gaza" will be flying the Houston-Doha route.
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