Qatar Airways Cargo said it transported 190 horses to and from equestrian events in Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

In a statement, it said it transported the horses for the Amir Sword Festival in Doha, the Saudi Cup in Riyadh, the Commercial Bank CHI AL SHAQAB  presented by Longines in Doha, and the Longines Global Champions Tour (LGCT) in Doha.

Qatar Airways Cargo noted that the horses it transported originate in Ireland, the United Kingdom, and France. Meanwhile, those horses competing in the CHI AL SHAQAB and LGCT came from all over Europe.

The cargo carrier said it coordinates their transport together with specialized horse agents in Europe and Qatar. They travel via the Horse Inn at Liège Airport (LGG), which sees much of Europe's horse traffic, and Hamad International Airport (DOH).

In total, Qatar Airways Cargo said three full horse charters flew from LGG to DOH: two on February 19 and one on February 20.

Meanwhile, for the Saudi Cup preparations,  it said the transport involved arranging a double pick-up from the US: the carrier flew first to Los Angeles (LAX) to pick up four horses, and from there on to Miami (MIA), to collect another eight and fly them all to Riyadh (RUH), Saudi Arabia.

Two days later, 14 horses were flown from Osaka Airport (KIX) in Japan to Riyadh, also for the Saudi Cup.

"Every horse transport requires meticulous advance planning and coordination with the customers, the specialized freight forwarders, and the respective airport facilities. We take great pains to ensure that the animals entrusted to our care have as stress-free a journey as possible, naturally in line with all animal transport regulations," said Guillaume Halleux, chief officer cargo at Qatar Airways.

"Alongside state-of-the-art horse stalls, and seats for the grooms onboard our freighters, we also ensure that the distance to the aircraft from the airport animal facility, as well as the waiting times, are as short as possible." 

The Qatar Cargo chief noted that race-horses often have a very high value, and they are shipped three to seven days prior to the event in order to be at peak fitness on race day.

"We are well versed in dealing with this precious cargo. Horses meanwhile make up around 35% of all our QR Live animal shipments, and we are one of the main horse transportation carriers in the world," he added.

Qatar Cargo noted that all horses were safely returned to their countries, onboard three charter flights from Doha to Liège from February 28 to March 6 and 7.

Qatar Airways Cargo is the fourth airline worldwide, and the first Middle Eastern carrier to be awarded the IATA CEIV Live Animals certification in January this year.