Qatar Airways (QR, Doha Hamad International) has returned to service the last of its A350s parked as a result of fuselage paint deterioration issues, which caused a heated legal dispute between the airline and Airbus in 2021-2023.
A350-900 A7-ALF (msn 11) was removed from revenue operations in July 2021 and initially parked at Doha Hamad International, before flying to Shannon on December 22, 2023. Flightradar24 ADS-B data shows it returned, post-maintenance, to Qatar on February 7 and operated its first revenue flight after more than 2.5 years on February 16, as QR1190 to Jeddah International.
The ch-aviation fleets module shows that Qatar Airways operates thirty-four A350-900s and twenty-four A350-1000s. It has a further eighteen -1000s on order from Airbus. While one aircraft of each type is currently inactive, this is related to short-term maintenance and not to the fuselage paint snafu.
The rift between the companies began in mid-2021, when the airline parked - ostensibly on the orders of the Qatari Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA) - over twenty A350s due to the deterioration of their fuselage paint. After the carrier sued the manufacturer for compensation, Airbus responded with a countersuit and cancelled Qatar Airways' outstanding orders. The two companies reconciled in early 2023 through a settlement on undisclosed terms. The agreement included the restoration of Qatar Airways' A350-1000 orders (deliveries of which resumed in June 2023) and its fifty A321-200Ns.
