Tomorrow will mark just six weeks until Qatar Airways finally commences operations on an interesting triangular route to South America from its main hub at Doha Hamad International Airport (DOH). The corridor in question will first serve El Dorado International Airport (BOG) in Bogota, Colombia, before continuing to Simón Bolívar International Airport (CCS) in the Venezuelan capital city of Caracas.

From there, it will return to Doha nonstop, allowing Qatar Airways to efficiently serve two South American destinations at once without the financial risk of launching a pair of separate routes. The launch of this service has been long-awaited, having been pushed back multiple times. Qatar Airways plans to use the Boeing 777-200LR to make it a reality, offering QSuite comfort in business class.

Six Weeks To Go

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According to present scheduling data made available by Cirium, an aviation analytics company, Qatar Airways is set to operate its first flight from Doha to Bogota and Caracas on November 4. Numbered as flight QR783, this service will leave Doha at 7:50 AM and arrive in Caracas at 9:30 PM local time, some 20 hours and 40 minutes later. This includes a layover in Bogota, where it lands at 4:40 PM.

It will be back in the air just 105 minutes later, departing Bogota at 6:25 PM ahead of its aforementioned 9:30 PM arrival in Caracas. Its turnaround in the capital city of Venezuela is also a relatively short one, with the return to Doha set to take off at 11:20 PM, just one hour and 50 minutes later. After 14 hours and five minutes on the move, it will reach Doha at 8:25 PM the next day. Qatar Airways says that:

“The flight schedule has been designed to provide smooth onward connections through Hamad International Airport to key markets including Australia, China, Japan, Lebanon, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates.”

A Delayed Debut

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A key reason behind the considerable excitement about this launch is the fact that it has already had to be pushed back several times. Indeed, as if the ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East are not causing enough uncertainty, Venezuela also had to come to terms with the impacts of a devastating earthquake in late June. Originally, the flights were set to begin less than a month later, on July 22.

However, a week before the planned launch, Simple Flying reported that the debut had been pushed back by six weeks to September 2. A spokesperson for Qatar Airways confirmed at the time that “the launch of services to Bogota and Caracas has been postponed following the recent earthquake in Venezuela.” AeroRoutes then reported in August that the September launch had been pushed to November.

Elsewhere, the situation forced United Airlines to postpone the resumption of its flights between Houston (IAH) and Caracas until January. American Airlines was more bullish, returning to Caracas from Miami (MIA) as soon as September 3. However, even as flights returned, the airport was not fully up and running, with passengers having to be processed in a temporary facility in the car park due to damage.

What’s It Like On Board?

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As detailed in the table below, Qatar Airways’ Boeing 777-200LR jets have two relatively similar seating layouts as far as capacity is concerned. However, for business class passengers, the exact aircraft can make all the difference, as the ’77L’ layout has six-abreast ‘MiniPod’ seats that lack direct aisle access for those sitting at the windows. Meanwhile, the ’77K’ layout has four-abreast ‘QSuite’ seats.

The good news for passengers flying on Qatar Airways’ new route to Bogota and Caracas is that the 777-200LRs serving this corridor are the 272-seat variety that features the QSuites in business class. Here, every premium passenger has direct aisle access, although the staggered layout means that not all window seats are right by the window. In economy, the classic ten-abreast 3-4-3 layout prevails.