Qatar Airways Cargo has become the first cargo airline in the industry to offer online interline bookings with instant confirmations through its Digital Lounge portal. This advancement simplifies the booking process for interline partners, eliminating the need for local station contact and reducing the manual exchange of emails. The portal enhances efficiency by providing real-time access to booking information and updates. Currently used by American Airlines Cargo and Latam Cargo, the interline booking feature allows these partners to manage all bookings seamlessly on Qatar Airways Cargo flights. Plans are underway to expand this functionality to all interline partners in the near future.
The Digital Lounge portal includes features such as shipment tracking, multiple dimension uploads, notification configuration per air waybill, BUP bookings with ULD details, allotment bookings, and a tailored experience for consolidators. Customers can complete bookings in just 2 to 3 minutes, supported by a 24/7 technical support team. A recent addition to the portal, the ‘My Allotments’ feature, offers real-time visibility, prevents overbooking, and optimizes shipment planning. This tool, combined with Qatar Airways Cargo’s e-booking portal and omnichannel approach, provides customers with an enhanced and connected digital booking experience.
Mark Drusch, Chief Officer Cargo at Qatar Airways Cargo, explained: “Digitalization is a cornerstone of our strategy, and we are proud to continue setting new standards in the cargo industry. As the first air cargo carrier to offer online bookings with instant confirmations to our interline partners, we are committed to innovation and improving the booking experience for both our partners and our customers. Our teams actively gather customer feedback to enhance the user experience on the Digital Lounge portal, and we have made significant progress since its launch in 2022.” Faisal Karamat, Vice President Cargo Customer Experience at Qatar Airways Cargo, added: “Since the launch of Digital Lounge, we have welcomed over 6,800 registered customers and 15,000 users to the portal, achieving nearly 500,000 online bookings. The portal’sintuitive design and user-friendly layout have received high praise, underscoring its success in meeting customer needs and driving digitalization in the cargo industry. We are continually exploring ways to enhance our Digital Lounge, and the introduction of the new Interline feature is a testament to our commitment to adding valuable functionalities.”
