Etihad Airways Ramps Up Winter Schedule with New Destinations, More Flights and Better Connections
ABU DHABI, UAE: Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the United Arab Emirates, has unveiled an ambitious network overhaul, positioning the airline for sustainable expansion while improving its and Abu Dhabi’s links to global markets.
The new network is designed to support visitor growth and provide travellers with more options by:
Introducing new destinations: Ramping up capacity to sought-after international destinations, providing opportunities for travellers to explore and experience diverse cultures, while bringing more visitors directly to Abu Dhabi.
Providing more options: Provide passengers with enhanced travel flexibility with multiple and more convenient departure times, ensuring seamless and stress-free journeys.
Increasing frequencies to key international markets: Increasing flight frequencies to essential international destinations, fostering improved accessibility and strengthening the emirate’s position as a hub for global travellers.
The updated schedules have been timed for departures from Abu Dhabi at 2 pm, ensuring travelers and visitors can thoroughly experience Abu Dhabi’s hotels and attractions until their checkout time. This approach enhances the overall travel experience while maximising the enjoyment of Abu Dhabi’s offerings.
“As we embark on Etihad’s next chapter targeting growth, our ambitious network and improved connectivity allows us to better serve Abu Dhabi and our valued guests, forming the basis of our future expansion while providing flexibility and freedom to adapt to new opportunities and markets,” said Antonoaldo Neves, Chief Executive Officer of Etihad Airways.
“By offering more travel options and seamless connections, we aim to attract an increasing number of visitors to Abu Dhabi, propelling economic growth for the city while enriching the travel experience for our passengers.”
Network Updates
Etihad has already announced the launch of nine new destinations this year, including Malaga, Mykonos, Lisbon, Kolkata, Dusseldorf, Copenhagen, Osaka, and Boston. In addition, the airline this week published two new routes to the Indian Subcontinent, Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram, to be launched in January 2024. These new destinations showcase Etihad’s dedication to expanding connectivity and providing travellers with more options globally.
To complement these developments, Etihad has made several recent network changes and frequency adds to enhance travel options and connectivity. Highlights include: Improved Departure Times: Enhanced passenger convenience with adjusted departure times for European and Asian destinations.Expanded Frequencies: Increased frequencies to Chennai (MAA), Islamabad (ISB), Kochi (COK), Madrid (MAD), Milan (MXP), Munich (MUC), Rome (FCO), and Phuket (HKT) offer travelers more choices while improving travel options and connectivity.Cairo (CAI): An additional 5 flights per week to make triple daily operations to Cairo, effective from 1 Jan, strengthening the link between Abu Dhabi and the Egyptian capital.Colombo (CMB): 7 direct flights per week with 3 flights effective from 1 Dec and 4 flights effective from 1 Jan, further enhancing travel options to this destination.Maldives (MLE): An additional 7 flights per week, with 3 flights effective from 1 Dec and 4 flights effective from 1 Jan
The updated network leverages Etihad’s geographic advantage as a facilitator for seamless cultural exchange and developing economic opportunities along its network routes across Asia and Europe.
Boosting Abu Dhabi’s Economic Growth
A priority of the network is to play a vital role in supporting Abu Dhabi’s ambitions for economic growth. As connectivity increases, Abu Dhabi will benefit from improved Point-to-Point options, solidifying the city’s status as a prominent hub for business and tourism, as well as a gateway to the rest of the UAE and wider GCC to the rest of the world.
With the launch of its revamped network, Etihad is entering a new phase of growth and connectivity to provide seamless travel experiences, enhanced connections, and flexibility across its global network. DestinationChangeTotal FrequencyStart DateDusseldorfNew route3 per week28 September 2023CopenhagenNew route4 per week29 September 2023OsakaNew route5 per week1 October 2023LisbonExtended year-round3 per week29 October 2023KozhikodeNew route7 per week1 January 2024ThiruvananthapuramNew route7 per week1 January 2024BostonNew route4 per week31 March 2024Chennai+7 per week21 per week15 September 2023Frankfurt+4 per week11 per week29 October 2023Rome+4 per week11 per week4 November 2023AmsterdamRetimed7 per week21 November 2023Kochi+8 per week21 per week21 November 2023Madrid+3 per week10 per week21 November 2023Milan+3 per week10 per week21 November 2023Munich+3 per week10 per week21 November 2023Phuket+7 per week14 per week21 November 2023Cairo+5 per week21 per week1 January 2024Colombo7 direct per week7 per week1 January 2024Islamabad+2 per week14 per week1 January 2024Maldives (Male)+7 per week14 per week1 January 2024
For more information, visit etihad.com source: biztoday
