The war conflict in Iran has forced Qatar Airways to park part of your fleet thousands of miles from home. What may have surprised some is that the chosen destination was the Teruel airport. But it makes more sense than it seems. We tell you all the details.
The trigger. On February 28, when the United States and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury against Iran, the military escalation that followed caused the closure of airspace Qatar and, with it, the temporary suspension of Qatar Airways commercial flights. The company, based at Doha’s Hamad International Airport, announced it would not resume operations until civil aviation authorities ensured safe conditions. Since then, as has shared El Confidencial has only operated specific flights through restricted air corridors.
Why Teruel? With a fleet grounded and the risk of keeping it in a war-torn region, Qatar Airways needed to move its planes to safe and affordable locations. Teruel Airport, which does not operate regular passenger flights but is home to Tarmac Aerosave, a company specialized in parking, maintenance and aeronautical recycling with offices also in Toulouse and Tarbes, was a perfect fit.
It is not the first time that its facilities have faced a crisis of this caliber, since during the pandemic it managed to guard 127 aircraft simultaneously, including more than twenty Airbus A-380s, according to they count from Diario de Teruel.
The numbers. In less than ten days, Qatar Airways has moved at least 17 of its aircraft to Teruel, which were joined by three other planes from different companies, including an Air France Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner from Paris, according to The Diary. Among the models that have arrived at the facilities are several wide-body Airbus A330s (with capacity for between 335 and 440 passengers), Airbus A350s and some Boeings.
Just like share The medium, this Sunday five planes landed in just over an hour: four A330s from Doha and one A350 from Los Angeles. They all arrived with special flight codes indicating they were traveling without passengers on board. Octavio López, president of the Teruel Airport Consortium, said that the airlines arrive “knowing that in Teruel they will find a safe and prepared place for parking and all the maintenance tasks that their aircraft require.”
There are currently about 70 aircraft parked on the Teruel platform, and that number may continue to grow as long as the conflict lasts.
Change of plans. Qatar Airways is not the only one affected. Etihad Airways, based in Abu Dhabi, operates a very reduced commercial program, and Emirates, from Dubai, also maintains a reduced scheme. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued at the end of February an alert bulletin in which it recommends not operating in the airspace of eleven countries in the region, including Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, at any altitude.
Routes between Europe and Asia, which usually cross the Persian Gulf, have been diverted south (via Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Oman) or north (via the Caucasus and Afghanistan), adding between 45 minutes and two hours to each flight. Added to that are interference in GPS signals detected over Lebanon and Oman, which further complicate commercial flights.
What happens now? The situation remains very volatile. US President Donald Trump threatened this Sunday with attack Iran’s power plants if the country does not open the Strait of Hormuz, to which the Iranian Army responded warning of possible attacks on US strategic assets in the region. The situation is not yet expected to normalize soon. In fact, Qatar Airways has asked to its passengers not to go to the airports unless they receive official confirmation of their flight, offering date changes or refunds to those who had reservations until March 22. For now, it seems that more planes will continue to arrive in Teruel.
Cover image | Jan Rosolino
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