manymany

As quite a few people are concerned with short connections at Doha, I thought I would give my recent experiences of short connections, in Business Class, hand baggage only:

QR176 OSL-DOH Arrive 01:25am
Connecting to
QR836 DOH-BKK Departing 02:10am
Connection Time: 45 minutes

The flight from Oslo arrived on time although parked up at a bus gate. There was a dedicated bus for Business Class passengers. The bus deposited us at the terminal where we went up one escalator and were in the transfer security area. There was no queue at all (even in the normal lane which is what I used) and I was straight through without taking my laptop or liquids out of my bag. Down the escalator from Transfer Security and then I was in the "centre" of the terminal (near the giant teddy).

I had already noticed a feature on the 787 from Oslo within the Moving Map section where gate numbers are displayed for connecting flights once you are near Doha. Once you go into the moving map, you need to select "Your Destination" and it will cycle through some screens with the information. I had already seen that QR836 to Bangkok would be departing from C12. I reconfirmed this on the Flight Information Display Screens after Transfer Security.

I checked the time as I started walking down Concourse C and it as about 01:45am, however, I could see C12 right down at the end. I walked it without using the moving walkways and found there was still a queue at the gate boarding pass check when I got there at 01:50am so easily made the flight. I think doors closed at about 02:20am.

QR833 BKK-DOH Arrive 00:25am
Connecting to
QR179 DOH-OSL Departing 01:20am
Connection Time: 55 minutes

We arrived from Bangkok on time again, however because we approached DOH from the South, there was a slow taxi back to the terminal where we parked up at gate A5.

Upon entering there terminal from the jet bridge, there were some personnel directing transferring passengers downstairs. There were personnel at the top and bottom of the stairs shouting out various european destinations (Copenhagen, Stockholm, Munich) but not Oslo! It turns out this route from the jet bridge didn't require us to go through Transfer Security and were deposited directly into Concourse A.

I couldn't find the same gate information on the A380 Moving Map so had to check the Flight Information Displays which confirmed gate D3 for QR179 to Oslo. I initially thought this was a bus gate. I set off using the moving walkways and checked my time at Concourse C: 00:50am! Thought I'd best get a move on if it was a bus gate. Concourse C was a bit like a racetrack with carts going up and down and passengers running for gates - looked like a lot of tight connections.

Once I got to the end of C and realised D3 isn't a bus gate I slowed up and made it on the plane for 01:00am. There were still a few passengers sat in the gate area waiting to board so there didn't appear to be much rush. Doors closed at about 01:20am.

Conclusion
The short connections can be easily done if your plane lands into Doha on-time(ish). Granted, I was in Business so if I was in Economy it may have been a different story but still do-able. I'm relatively fit and young, I don't use a wheelie bag so I can and do walk up and down escalators. I think once you are in the terminal and are in any doubt about your connection, there appears to be many personnel stood around you could talk to and they could get you on a cart. I saw one man jump onto a cart down Concourse C. But if you were in real danger they would be at the gate waiting for you or you would be re-booked onto next service.

Of course, there are many factors that could affect your connection, nearly most of them you can't do anything about and is just luck of the draw.

Hope this helps.

SadKingBilly

I'd say you were lucky. I was recently connecting from HND to CDG flight (both J) with a 90-minute connection, and when I arrived to transfer security there was a line (well, a crowd, really) of about 300 people ahead of me. Despite my "keep it visible" ticket jacket, the lad just waved me into the crowd. After about 20 minutes of not moving I decided to take action, walked to the start of the queue, found another lad and asked whether they have a line for business as I was about to miss my flight. He took me through the barrier and deposited me at the head of the queue, so I made my flight (which was departing from low B gates, so quite a bit of walking through the airport after security). Even though it worked out at the end, lack of organisation or any queue management made it more stressful than necessary. Unfortunately, this appeard to be common for DOH transfers as some people described similar experiences.

purple1addict

I guess I've been very lucky too. In over 50 transits through DOH (old and new airports) I can't recall ever spending more than 10 mins in even the worst security line - and I'm often in Y class. Even when travelling in J class, I don't always bother with the fast track line, as the normal line is either empty or moving quickly.

SadKingBilly

The only advice I can give based on my very limited experience is to avoid transferring at DOH between 6am and 7am .

ckx2

Lucky you. As QR 947 (SIN-DOH) is known for it's usual delayed departure, I've had troubles to reach QR 77 (DOH-TXL). I've missed my flight and was left without a suitable connection. No hotel provided because I was on AA award ticket. Spent a good of 13 hours in the lounge until the next flight, where I got downgraded to Economy.