Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—On Wednesday, November 4, Qatar Airways inaugurated its Doha–Bogotá–Caracas service, becoming the first Gulf carrier to operate in Venezuela. The twice-weekly service links West Asia with Bogotá before continuing to Caracas on a Boeing 777-200LR, according to the airline.The inaugural flight landed at Maiquetía’s Simón Bolívar International Airport at 4:06 p.m. local time. Transport Minister Francisco Garcés, Public Works Minister Juan José Ramírez, Tourism Minister Daniella Cabello, First Vice Foreign Minister Yuri Pimentel, Qatari embassy officials, and airline representatives welcomed the aircraft. Acting President Delcy Rodríguez announced its arrival during an official activity in Monagas state. Venezuelan authorities and Telesur reported the reception.Qatar Airways marked the launch at Hamad International Airport in Doha, where crew members displayed the flags of Qatar, Venezuela, and Colombia. The airline says Bogotá and Caracas are its 16th and 17th destinations in the American continent, respectively. Its South American service began in 2010 with flights to São Paulo, and its winter schedule covers over 170 destinations worldwide.Route and scheduleQatar Airways lists two weekly departures, on Wednesdays and Sundays, under flight QR783. All times are local:Doha–Bogotá: departure 07:35; arrival 16:25.Bogotá–Caracas: departure 17:55; arrival 21:00.Caracas–Doha: departure 23:30; arrival 20:35 the following day.The airline says the timetable offers connections through Doha to destinations across Asia and Oceania. Its expanded partnership with LATAM also adds connections from Bogotá to 17 Colombian cities through LATAM Airlines Colombia.Delays and the route’s broader contextQatar Airways first announced the route in January 2025. The company later scheduled its launch for July 22, 2026, before delaying it again after the June 24 double earthquake damaged Maiquetía airport. In July, the airline suspended ticket sales for the planned service; the route was subsequently rescheduled for November.The route’s development took place amid escalating US sanctions and military aggression against Venezuela in 2025. On January 3, 2026, US forces bombed Venezuela and kidnapped President Nicolás Maduro and National Assembly Deputy Cilia Flores. More than 100 people were killed, including 32 Cuban and 47 Venezuelan soldiers.During the second half of 2025, US imperialist preparations for military aggression severely disrupted domestic and international air traffic in Venezuela. The disruption came amid widespread GPS jamming and explicit calls by the US regime to close Venezuelan airspace.The earthquake also disrupted wider aviation recovery. Transport Minister Garcés said Venezuela had since doubled the number of airlines serving the country compared with the period before the earthquakes. He reported over 70,000 passengers on domestic and international flights in October, while Tourism Minister Cabello said Venezuela had 173 international flights each week, according to the Ministry for Transport.The service begins as the US-Israeli war on Iran continues to affect Gulf security and transport. Iran has asserted control over the Strait of Hormuz and launched retaliatory strikes against US military positions in the region.FaresQatar Airways’ travel-trade page lists all-inclusive round-trip fares to Caracas from Muscat starting at OMR 681 (about US$1,771) in economy and OMR 2,394 (about US$6,226) in premium cabin. From Salalah, round-trip fares start at OMR 709 (about US$1,844) in economy and OMR 2,446 (about US$6,362) in premium cabin, for trips originating in Oman, not Caracas.Solidarity for Qatar, Silence on Iran: Venezuela’s Diplomatic Blunder Under US PressureSocial media posts advertised fares from Caracas to Dubai starting at US$343 in economy, with Amman from US$472, New Delhi from US$644, Bangkok from US$747, and business class from US$3,020. The posts gave a November 5–12 booking window for travel through March 31, 2027, but did not specify whether the fares were one-way or round-trip. The advertised prices could not be confirmed through Qatar Airways’ public booking search. Special for Orinoco Tribune by staffOT/JRE/SF