Mukesh Ambani flies to Qatar to meet Trump at Doha state dinner

Mukesh Ambani flew from Navi Mumbai to Doha on May 12, 2026, aboard his Boeing 737 MAX 9 BBJ, tail number VT-AKV. The short hop — barely 2,000 nautical miles — put the Reliance Industries chairman in Qatar just ahead of a state dinner at the Lusail Palace hosted by Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani for US President Donald Trump.

The timing is no coincidence. According to a Firstpost report published May 14, 2025, Ambani flew to Doha specifically to meet Trump at that dinner, marking their second meeting since Trump returned to office in January. A separate Reuters story confirmed Ambani would attend the dinner but planned no formal investment discussions. The trip comes as Reliance navigates shifting US energy policy: per an Economic Times report from March 2026, the company is in talks with America First Refining about a potential equity stake in a new Texas refinery, a project Trump publicly thanked Reliance for supporting.

Ambani's jet — India's first MAX 9 BBJ, customized for more than $120 million — has been a fixture on routes connecting Mumbai to Dubai, Muscat, and the Maldives in recent months. The Doha stop fits a pattern: Reliance has deep ties with Qatar's sovereign wealth fund, which has invested roughly $1 billion in Ambani's retail venture, and Ambani attended Trump's pre-inauguration dinner in Washington just months ago. Business diplomacy, it seems, still travels by private jet.