Qatar Airways Cargo has announced a new partnership with Xiamen Airlines, the first Chinese airline to operate passenger non-stop flights from Mainland China to Qatar.

The new partnership will allow Qatar Airways Cargo to provide additional belly cargo capacity for customers to and from Mainland China.

In a statement, Qatar Airways Cargo noted that under the cooperation agreement, Xiamen Airlines will launch daily flights between Beijing's Daxing International Airport (PKX) to Doha's Hamad International Airport.

The flights will commence on October 20, 2023.

In addition to the flights from Beijing, Xiamen Airlines will also launch two weekly flights from Xiamen (XMN), the special economic zone of Fujian Sheng province, to Doha, commencing October 31, 2023.

Xiamen Airlines will connect DOH with PKX (seven times a week) and XMN (two times a week), providing more than 100 tonnes of capacity on board both flights.

The new direct services from Beijing to Doha will be operated by a Boeing 787-9, and the Xiamen-Doha-Xiamen service will be operated by a Boeing 787-8.

"China has always been a key market for us and our customers. We are delighted to be able to offer our clients even more capacity," said Elisabeth Oudkerk, SVP of Cargo Sales & Network Planning at Qatar Airways Cargo.

"We will now serve 9 destinations in Mainland China, offering over 2,800 weekly tonnes of cargo capacity. We welcome Xiamen Airlines and look forward to working closely with them," she added.

Tong Qianju, vice president of Xiamen Airlines Cargo, for his part, noted that Xiamen Airlines Cargo is very happy to expand its network reach for the first time to the Middle East.

"We are very honoured to do this with one of the top air cargo carriers in the world — Qatar Airways Cargo."

"Qatar is a huge hub for air cargo in the Middle East, and this relationship with Qatar Airways Cargo strengthens Xiamen Airlines' commitment to air cargo excellence. We look forward to working closely with Qatar Airways," Qianju added.