Qatar Airways Cargo carried more than 1.43 million tonnes of chargeable air freight in the 2025-26 financial year, reinforcing its position as the world’s largest air freight carrier with a 12% share of the global market.The performance underlined Doha’s growing role as a major logistics hub at a time when global supply chains are being reshaped by e-commerce growth, tariff uncertainty, geopolitical disruption and shifting trade flows between Asia, Europe and the Middle East. The cargo business remained one of the strongest contributors to Qatar Airways Group’s performance, alongside passenger operations and airport-linked services.
Qatar Airways Group reported a post-tax profit of QAR7.08bn, equivalent to about $1.94bn, for the financial year despite operational pressure in the final month from geopolitical disruption. Group revenue reached QAR83.75bn, while operating profit stood at QAR15.2bn, the highest in the airline group’s history. The airline carried 41.8 million passengers during the year and maintained connectivity through Hamad International Airport, which continues to serve as the centre of its global cargo and passenger network.
Cargo growth was supported by a combination of freighter operations and belly-hold capacity across Qatar Airways’ widebody passenger fleet. The carrier maintained links to more than 160 destinations and continued to build cargo access across key trade corridors. Dedicated freighter services were added to Baghdad, Cairo, Erbil, Tbilisi and Yerevan, strengthening coverage across West Asia, the Caucasus and North Africa. Capacity was also increased through major Asian gateways, including Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Macau, where demand for high-value, time-sensitive shipments remains strong.
The company’s partnership with Virgin Australia doubled cargo capacity from major Australian hubs, giving exporters and freight forwarders greater access to the Doha hub and onward connections to Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The expansion fits a broader industry pattern in which carriers with strong widebody networks are capturing demand from pharmaceuticals, perishables, electronics, industrial parts and e-commerce shipments.
Global air cargo demand reached record volumes in 2025, growing 3.4% year on year, while available capacity rose 3.7%. Asia-Pacific carriers recorded the strongest demand growth at 8.4%, while Middle Eastern carriers posted modest overall growth of 0.3% but expanded capacity by 4.5%. The figures show a market in which demand remains uneven across regions, with strong Asia-linked flows balancing weaker North American performance and pressure from changing tariff rules.
Qatar Airways Cargo’s 12% global market share is significant because the wider Middle East carrier grouping accounted for about 13.2% of global cargo tonne-kilometres in 2025. The Doha-based carrier’s scale gives it influence well beyond its home market, particularly on lanes where shipments move between Asia and Europe via Gulf hubs. The Middle East–Asia corridor grew 5.8% in 2025, while Europe–Asia traffic expanded 10.3%, supporting the business case for high-frequency long-haul cargo operations through Doha.
The carrier is also preparing for further capacity growth. Qatar Airways has announced network enhancements that will raise overall cargo capacity by 12%, combining new freighter routes, restored passenger services and increased belly-hold space. Planned additions include belly-hold cargo services to Caracas and Bogotá, making the airline the first Middle East carrier to offer such cargo links to both South American capitals. Each route is expected to provide about 20 tonnes of capacity each way per week when services begin.
Fleet investment is another pillar of the cargo strategy. Qatar Airways signed landmark agreements with Boeing and GE Aerospace covering up to 210 widebody aircraft and more than 400 engines. The Boeing order includes 787 Dreamliners and 777-9 aircraft, both central to long-haul passenger and cargo economics. Although the order is primarily framed around passenger fleet renewal and expansion, widebody aircraft provide substantial belly-hold cargo capacity, giving the cargo division more flexibility as new aircraft enter service.
Sustainability and cost pressure remain key constraints for the sector. Jet fuel prices averaged lower in 2025 than in 2024, but refining margins and limited sustainable aviation fuel availability continue to affect airline economics. Sustainable aviation fuel supply remains far below the level needed for aviation’s long-term decarbonisation targets, and its price premium adds pressure to freight costs, especially on long-haul lanes where fuel is a major expense.
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