Qatar Airways gifts Cambodian youngsters with tour of aircraft to celebrate Children

Qatar Airways has offered an opportunity to 15 Cambodian youngsters to tour one of the airline’s aircrafts on the occasion of International Children’s Day.

The event also coincided with the celebration of the airline’s 100th flight to Cambodia’s capital city, since it began regular flights to Phnom Penh International Airport last February.

Conducted in partnership with Cambodia Airports, the aircraft visit was a dream come true for the children as they were welcomed by Qatar Airways’ pilots and cabin crew onboard the airline’s Airbus A330.

Aged between 9 and 12 years, the children were from Pour un Sourire d’Enfant (For a Child’s Smile), a non-government organisation which focuses on educating orphaned children.

Meeting the crew and going inside the aircraft’s cockpit, the children were thrilled to see the aircraft up close and personal. There were smiles all round as Qatar Airways’ cabin crew gave away special gifts onboard.

Qatar Airways states that through this initiative, the airline hopes to open up the world of aviation to these children, inspiring them to become the aviators of tomorrow.

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker said he was delighted the airline could help fulfill the dreams and provide smiles all around for the youngsters.

“To bring smiles to children is always a great pleasure and Qatar Airways is thrilled to have given these young children an opportunity of a lifetime to see a plane close-up and tour the aircraft with our crew.”

Qatar Airways Country Manager Vietnam, Cambodia & Laos, Rohan Seneviratne added: "Participating in the event was both a privilege and a humbling experience. It was most gratifying for us at Qatar Airways see so many excited children onboard our aircraft.”

Qatar Airways was recently named worldwide partner of Educate A Child (EAC), a global education program launched by Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser of Qatar in November 2012, designed to ensure every child has access to a quality education and to addresses the plight of 61 million out-of-school children around the world.

Based in Doha, Qatar Airways is one of the fastest growing airlines in the world. Boasting rapid growth in just 16 years of operations, currently flying a modern fleet of 124 aircraft to 128 key business and leisure destinations across Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific and The Americas.

Qatar Airways has launched six new destinations this year. The airline now flies to Gassim (Saudi Arabia), Najaf (Iraq), Phnom Penh (Cambodia), Chicago (USA), Salalah (Oman) and Basra (Iraq). The airline states that their network will expand with the addition of further destinations over the next few weeks and months to include Sulaymaniyah, Iraq on the 20th of August, Chengdu, China on the 3rd of September, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on the 18th of September, Clark International Airport, Philippines on the 28th of October and Philadelphia, USA on 2nd of April 2014.