MIDDLE East carrier Qatar Airways has signed-up Bolton-based St Andrews Travel as a sales and ticketing agent.

The move coincides with the launch on April 2 of non-stop flights from Manchester to the airline's hub of Doha, capital of Qatar.

Paul Sutton, St Andrews Travel's business development manager, said: "The new Manchester-Doha service is great news for the region, but I expect most of our sales will be to onward points such as Dubai, Bangkok, Mumbai, Karachi, Lahore or Kathmandu."