Frontiers June 2014 31 could purchase between 36 and 72 fighters in all, according to Hill. And there are other Boeing military products that may eventually win orders from the country, Hill said. As Qatar’s business with Boeing has grown, so have the company’s presence and civic involvement. Boeing Research & Technology, for example, signed an agreement in 2011 with the Qatar Foundation’s Qatar Computing Research Institute to perform data analytics for Boeing in the Arabic language. When that project was completed ahead of schedule, Boeing signed a $1 million agreement with the institute, which will perform advanced analytics work. Data analytics is one of the niche high-tech industries in which Qatar has invested as part of its economic diversification efforts, Johnson said. Boeing has sponsored opportunities for university students from Qatar, held educational outreach activities for children through the Qatar Foundation and the Seattle-based Museum of Flight, and organized a series of lectures featuring Boeing leaders and a former U.S. astronaut. The company also has pursued corporate citizenship programs in Qatar. These include supporting INJAZ/ Junior Achievement, an entrepreneurship training program for university-level students. Additionally, Boeing has supported training for parents, teachers and caregivers that emphasizes the importance of early education from birth to age 5. Through the Arab Youth Venture Foundation, Boeing has launched a teacher training course that uses an applied, problem-based curriculum developed by NASA, the U.S. space agency, to help Qatari teachers make math and science fun and relevant in the classroom. Such efforts show Qatar and its residents the depth of Boeing’s commitment to the country, but they also help Boeing stand out in an area where competition is growing, Hill said. “Anytime we’re helping an economy diversify or training young people and giving them opportunities, that helps expand the pie globally,” he said. “And it’s differentiating us from our competitors because we are local, because we have a valued presence, and because we align our business strategy with the national aspirations of the country.” n eric.c.fetters-walp@boeing.com PHOTOS: (Clockwise from far left) Doha’s recently opened Hamad International Airport is designed to handle at least 50 million passengers annually upon completion. GETTY IMAGES Qatar’s first 787 Dreamliner, shown in Qatar Airways livery, was delivered in November 2012; a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III airlifter in Qatar livery; a Boeing AH-64 Apache attack helicopter in flight. BOEING Qatar’s first Boeing jetliner, a 777-300ER (Extended Range), received a water-cannon salute upon its arrival in Doha in 2007. QATAR AIRWAYS
Frontiers June 2014 Issue
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