<p class="ingestion featured-caption">Qatar's A380s come equipped with a flying bar and lounge for business and first-class passengers.MIGUEL MEDINA/Getty Images</p><ul class="summary-list"><li>Qatar Airways' new CEO told reporters in July that the airline is keeping its beloved A380s.</li><li>The decision came down to demand, airport and sky congestion, and the delayed Boeing 777X.</li></ul><p>Qatar Airways has gone back and forth on what to do with its <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/review-economy-class-emirates-a380-dubai-london-airport-2023-5">Airbus A380</a>s.</p><p>Its former CEO, Akbar al Bakar, said told <a target="_blank" class href="https://simpleflying.com/qatar-airways-a380-mistake/">Simple Flying</a> in 2021 that buying the planes was a "big mistake," given its high costs and inefficiencies.</p><p>However, on the sidelines of the <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/neither-boeing-nor-airbus-won-this-years-farnborough-airshow-2024-7">Farnborough Airshow</a> in July, Qatar's new CEO, Badr Mohammed Al Meer, told the media that the quad-engine is getting a second life.</p><p>"His Excellency, maybe he gave this comment years ago based on the situation of the industry, but today it's different," he said, referring to Bakar.</p><p>Across the industry, airlines have been<a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/airbus-a380-superjumbo-history-boeing-747-emirates-2017-11"> retiring the A380</a> en masse. While it was loved for its grandeur, its two levels and four engines simply aren't as economical as the twin-engine widebody competitors like the <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/air-india-airbus-a350-soon-flying-us-jfk-photos-2024-7">Airbus A350</a> and <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/hawaiian-airlines-boeing-7879-dreamliner-business-class-design-leihk-2023-5">Boeing 787. </a></p><p>Qatar believes it has found the niche routes that make its A380s profitable out of its lucrative Doha base. Executives said the U-turn came down to airspace and airport congestion, demand, and the <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/qatar-airways-airbus-a380-not-retiring-boeing-777x-replacement-2024">delayed Boeing 777X.</a></p><p>Qatar isn't just <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/qatar-airways-airbus-a380-not-retiring-boeing-777x-replacement-2024">keeping A380s around</a> as placeholders, either. In March, Al Meer <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/03/15/qatar-airways-to-launch-first-class-as-airline-courts-airbus-and-boeing-for-new-planes.html">said</a> the airline is also designing a new first-class cabin for the jets.</p><p>Until then, passengers can still enjoy the luxury Qatar's A380s currently offer, including a flying bar.</p>