Qatar Airways permanently retires Airbus A330s grounded since start of Iran war

Qatar Airways has permanently retired its remaining Airbus A330 passenger aircraft , nearly seven months after the jets stopped flying when the war with Iran disrupted operations across the Gulf.

The decision was reported by Reuters on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter and flight data. Qatar Airways has also begun temporarily sending A330 pilots to RwandAir , which continues to operate the type.

The retirement effectively makes permanent a withdrawal that began at the end of February. Flight histories reviewed by Air Data News show Qatar Airways A330s operating regular passenger services until February 27 and 28, when the conflict led to widespread airspace closures and severe disruption to the airline's network.