European carriers are becoming increasingly concerned by the Middle East airline threat on their core international businesses. CEOs from British Airways, Air France and Lufthansa have all voiced their opinions lately, as Middle East airlines continue to expand their global networks. But the European flag carriers are not standing idly by. Several are rapidly expanding their presence in the Middle East, to maintain and/or grow their share of this promising market. Emirates is the clear market leader, with a 21.0% share of capacity on Middle East-Europe routes. Qatar Airways is the second largest, with 8.7%, while Lufthansa, British Airways and Air France have just 5.6%, 3.5% and 2.7% shares, respectively.