Qatar Airways expands African network: more flights to key destinations and a new route to Port Sudan
Qatar Airways has announced a new expansion of its African flight network, with the return of selected routes, increased frequencies to important cities and the introduction of a new service to Port Sudan. According to the company’s announcement of 18 May 2026, the increased operations begin on 16 June 2026, while the new Doha – Port Sudan route will launch on 2 July 2026 with three weekly flights. This further strengthens the Qatari carrier’s African network in the summer schedule, during a period when airlines traditionally adjust capacity to higher demand for international travel.
The announcement fits into the broader process of restoring and increasing Qatar Airways’ global operations. In April, the company announced that from 16 June 2026 it plans to fly to more than 150 destinations, and in the more recent announcement about Africa it states that during the summer it will expand its network to more than 160 destinations worldwide. According to Qatar Airways, the schedule is focused on better connectivity via Doha and Hamad International Airport, which remains the main hub for connections to Africa, the Middle East, Asia and other regions.
New route to Port Sudan starts on 2 July
The most important new development in the African schedule is the launch of flights to Port Sudan, a city on the Red Sea coast that has gained additional transport and administrative importance during the Sudanese war. Qatar Airways states that from 2 July 2026 it will fly between Doha and Port Sudan three times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Flight QR1319 will depart from Doha at 9:00 and arrive in Port Sudan at 11:00 local time. The return flight QR1320 is scheduled to depart from Port Sudan at 12:25 and arrive in Doha at 16:20.
According to the company’s announcement, the new route should make travel easier for passengers coming to Sudan from Middle Eastern and Southeast Asian markets, including Oman and Pakistan, with a connection in Doha. Qatar Airways also highlights the trade component, stating that additional connectivity can be significant for the movement of passengers and goods. In the context of Sudan, such an announcement carries additional weight because regular international traffic in the country has been seriously disrupted since the beginning of the war in April 2023, while some air links have been restored gradually and with security restrictions.
Port Sudan has in recent years become one of the country’s key transport strongholds. According to reports by international media, after the outbreak of the war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in April 2023, international carriers suspended flights to Sudan, while the airport in Khartoum was closed or difficult to access due to fighting and damage. Part of the operations was redirected to the east of the country, where Port Sudan served as an important entry point for passengers, state structures and humanitarian flows. According to available information, the restoration of air traffic in Sudan remains gradual and dependent on security assessments.
Return of Seychelles, Kigali and Marrakech to the schedule
Alongside the new route to Port Sudan, Qatar Airways is also announcing the resumption of flights to three destinations that are important for tourism, business travel and regional connectivity. From 16 June 2026, the company plans to restart four weekly flights to Seychelles and two weekly flights to Kigali, the capital of Rwanda. From 1 July 2026, the return of a daily flight to Marrakech in Morocco is also planned.
Seychelles is a strong tourist destination in the Indian Ocean, Kigali is one of the most dynamic hubs of East Africa, and Marrakech is among the best-known cities in Morocco’s tourism and cultural space. The introduction and restoration of these flights show that Qatar Airways is combining leisure tourism markets, regional business travel and long-haul connections via Doha in its African schedule. For passengers planning a stay in these destinations, a larger number of direct and connected options can mean simpler travel planning, including accommodation near the selected destination when it comes to tourist or business visits.
The return of Marrakech is particularly significant because in recent years Morocco has been positioning itself ever more strongly as an aviation and tourism market connected with Europe, the Middle East and Africa. A daily frequency enables a more stable connecting schedule and greater flexibility for passengers arriving via Doha. In the case of Seychelles, the focus is on demand for luxury and leisure travel, while Kigali has an increasingly important role in regional business and conference travel. In this way, Qatar Airways is expanding its network toward different demand segments, instead of relying on only one type of market.
More flights to Egypt, South Africa and East Africa
In the same announcement, Qatar Airways also listed African destinations to which it is increasing the number of flights. Alexandria will, according to the company’s plan, grow from three weekly flights to up to seven flights per week, while Cairo will move from 28 weekly flights to up to 35 flights per week. Such an increase means that Cairo could have up to five flights per day in the summer schedule, placing it among the most frequent African points in Qatar Airways’ network.
In South Africa, Cape Town is expected to receive an increase from seven to up to ten weekly flights. For East Africa, Dar es Salaam is planned to grow from three to up to seven weekly flights. On the linked Lusaka – Harare routes, an increase from five to up to seven weekly flights is planned, and on the Maputo – Durban route from four to up to seven weekly flights. Such a structure shows that the company is increasing capacity not only to major metropolises but also to cities that serve as regional gateways for business, tourism and diaspora connections.
The increase in frequencies has a practical effect for passengers because it reduces dependence on one or two possible weekly departures and enables shorter connections in Doha. In the aviation industry, frequency often has the same importance as the mere presence of a route: more flights per week give passengers more choice, while allowing the company to distribute demand more effectively. For destinations such as Cairo, Cape Town and Dar es Salaam, additional flights can also facilitate cargo transport, especially higher-value goods or time-sensitive shipments.
Doha as a hub for connections to Africa
The central point of the announced expansion remains Doha. Qatar Airways emphasizes in its announcements that the new and increased operations rely on connections via Hamad International Airport, the airport that is key to the company’s long-haul model. According to Hamad International Airport data, at the Skytrax World Airport Awards 2025 the airport retained the title of the best airport in the Middle East for the eleventh consecutive year and won the recognition for the world’s best airport shopping for the third consecutive year.
For Qatar Airways, a strong hub in Doha enables the linking of markets that on their own might not have enough demand for a large number of direct intercontinental flights. Passengers from Africa can continue via Doha to the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, Europe and Australia, while passengers from those regions can use Doha as an entry point to African cities. In the case of Port Sudan, the company particularly highlights the markets of Oman and Pakistan, which indicates expected demand among communities that have personal, family or business links with Sudan.
Such a model depends not only on the number of destinations but also on schedule coordination. When the number of weekly departures increases, there is a greater likelihood that a passenger will find a connection with a reasonable transfer time. This is especially important for destinations that do not have a wide range of direct international flights or where travel is connected with business deadlines, family obligations, humanitarian needs or seasonal tourist movements.
Broader context: Sudan remains a security- and humanitarian-sensitive market
The announcement of flights to Port Sudan comes at a time when Sudan is still going through a deep crisis. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the conflict has caused an extremely severe humanitarian and protection crisis, with major needs for assistance, population displacement and damage to basic infrastructure. The UN humanitarian plan for Sudan for 2026 states that 33.7 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance, while the plan aims to reach 20.4 million people.
For that reason, air links to Sudan cannot be viewed only through the usual prism of commercial travel. They are also connected with the possibility of movement for families, humanitarian workers, business entities and institutions operating in extremely complex conditions. At the same time, flight schedules remain subject to security, regulatory and operational changes. Qatar Airways emphasizes in its operational notices that the schedule may be changed or cancelled due to circumstances beyond the company’s control, including security and regulatory reasons.
Sudanese air traffic has shown signs of gradual recovery in recent months, but still with pronounced risks. At the beginning of 2026, media reported on the restoration of certain domestic and international flights to Khartoum, but at the same time stated that air infrastructure and flight safety remained affected by wartime developments. In such circumstances, a new international route to Port Sudan represents an important signal of connectivity, but it does not remove the broader context of instability in the country.
African expansion is part of a larger return of the global network
During the spring of 2026, Qatar Airways published several updates about the restoration and expansion of its network. According to the company’s official announcements, services to more than 150 destinations are planned from mid-June, while a separate African announcement speaks of restoring the network to more than 160 destinations worldwide during the summer. In the same period, the company also announced the return or increase of flights to other regions, which points to a broader strategy of gradually increasing capacity after earlier disruptions and schedule changes.
In its official operational update, Qatar Airways states that the schedule, valid until 15 September 2026, is based on new routes and increased frequencies from Doha and to Doha. The company also points out that flights operate through dedicated corridors coordinated with the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority. Such notes are important because they show that network expansion is being carried out in an environment in which security and regulatory conditions remain an important part of planning.
The African market has several different layers for global carriers. Tourism, business travel, family and diaspora ties, regional trade, educational travel and humanitarian needs overlap within it. The increase in frequencies to larger cities such as Cairo, the growth toward tourist destinations such as Seychelles and Marrakech, and the introduction of Port Sudan show that Qatar Airways is trying to cover very different demand patterns. For passengers, in practice, this means more connection options, and for the cities included in the network, the possibility of stronger connectivity with global air traffic.
What changes for passengers
For passengers planning travel after 16 June 2026, the announced increases mean a wider choice of travel days and potentially better connectivity via Doha. The largest increase in the absolute number of flights concerns Cairo, which according to the company’s announcement rises to up to 35 weekly flights. The increases to Alexandria, Dar es Salaam, the combined Lusaka – Harare and Maputo – Durban routes are also important, because a transition to daily or almost daily frequency reduces restrictions when planning itineraries.
Passengers to tourist destinations such as Seychelles and Marrakech will gain additional options during the summer schedule period, and the greater frequency of flights can also help travel organizers, hotels and local tourism sectors. In such cases, it is useful to check the schedule, entry conditions, possible visa requirements and accommodation offers at the destination in good time, especially during periods of higher demand. Since schedules are subject to change, especially in markets with pronounced security or regulatory risks, passengers should check current information with the carrier before purchasing and immediately before travel.
Qatar Airways’ announcement does not mean that all routes will have the same commercial profile. Some will primarily serve tourism, others regional business, and others the connection of communities and countries with a limited number of international options. Precisely for this reason, the expansion of the African network has a broader significance than the mere increase in the number of flights: it shows how airlines in 2026 are again adapting networks to actual demand, but also to political, security and economic circumstances in individual markets.
Sources:
- Qatar Airways Newsroom – official announcement about the expansion of the African network, the new route to Port Sudan and increased frequencies to African destinations (link)
- Qatar Airways Newsroom – official announcement about expanding the global network to more than 150 destinations from 16 June 2026 (link)
- Qatar Airways Trade Portal – operational update about the flight schedule, dedicated corridors and possible schedule changes (link)
- Hamad International Airport – information about the airport’s awards at the Skytrax World Airport Awards 2025 (link)
- UN OCHA / Humanitarian Action – data from the Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan 2026 for Sudan (link)
- Sudan Tribune – report on plans for Qatar Airways’ return to Port Sudan and the context of air traffic in Sudan (link)