Under the terms of the revised agreement, designated Australian and UAE airlines will be able to operate an extra 14 weekly frequencies between the two countries from October 2016, up from the seven offered as part of a previous deal. Alongside the fast-expanding UAE national entities, this will permit Qantas and Virgin Australia to also boost its flights to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, markets its currently serves in partnership with the two Gulf carriers.
The introduction of the two additional return flights increases to nearly 4,200 the total number of seats available to passengers travelling by Etihad between the UAE and Morocco each week and comes as the carrier prepares to celebrate ten years of operations into the North African country.
The five times weekly Belgrade - New York JFK link will be operated using a leased two-class Airbus A330-200 and Air Serbia is currently considering lease options with Etihad Airways Partner airlines as well as with other external companies. The airline currently operates a fleet of 14 narrow-bodied and six turboprop aircraft.
flynas will introduce a five times weekly link between King Khalid International Airport and Abu Dhabi International Airport from December 16, 2015, complementing the existing 13 weekly flights already offered by Etihad on the route, providing greater choice and flexibility for passengers travelling from Saudi Arabia, the UAE or beyond.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) highlighted the importance of overcoming airspace congestion, taking advantage of innovations with the New Distribution Capability (NDC) and aligning with the global industry strategy for reducing aviation’s climate change impact for the further successful development of aviation in the Middle East.
After Delta recently reduced service between the world’s busiest airport and the largest international airport, the carrier has now confirmed it will end the route from February 11, 2016. It said the Boeing 777 used on this city pair will be redeployed to other Transatlantic markets where it can “compete on a level playing field that’s not distorted by subsidised state-owned airlines”.
The A380 will operate flights EY460/461, one of the airline’s twice daily Abu Dhabi - Melbourne services from June 1, 2016, substituting one of the three-class Boeing 777-300ER aircraft it currently deploys on the route. The move will increase the total number of two-way seats on the Melbourne-Abu Dhabi route by 26 per cent to more than 11,500 seats per week.
The Partnership for Open and Fair Skies issued a statement earlier this week with supporting document which it claims shows that the Abu Dhabi-based airline received a cash injection of $2.5 billion in 2014 from the government.
What are the world's longest scheduled air routes by distance and block time? As Emirates Airline reveals plans to launch a Dubai - Panama City route in February 2016, Routesonline investigates.
Central Asian country, Kazakhstan has announced that it will expand its visa-free travel program to 19 countries across the world – allowing visitors to access the country for a period of 15 days without a visa.
Both Boeing and Airbus have released their long term forecasts of passenger and cargo traffic, as well as regional-jet manufacturers, Bombardier and Embraer. Routesonline are taking a look at the long term forecasts to assess the potential outlook for each region over the next 20 years.
In a detailed submission to the Commission, the airline advocates a policy which actively facilitates competition and consumer choice, addresses critical shortfalls in aviation infrastructure and eases restrictions on market access and investments by non-European airlines.
Etihad Airways has said that introducing the Boeing 787 Dreamliner to Zurich made logical sense as there has been a strong interest from Swiss travellers for the airline’s latest product.
Under the agreement, Etihad and Tourism Malaysia will put into effect a range of joint marketing activities targeting Malaysia’s leading inbound visitor markets – the UK, US, Europe (Germany, France and Italy), and the Middle East region (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait).
Airspace in the Middle East must have the flexibility to deal with the region’s rapid aviation growth, a subject that was highlighted in the Strategy Summit on the opening day of the inaugural Routes Middle East & Africa forum in Bahrain.
The study, commissioned by the Gulf hub carrier, projects that by 2020 the airline’s operating expenditure and capital investments will almost double to support 46,200 American jobs and deliver US$6.2 billion a year. These are among the key conclusions of the Oxford Economics Report to quantify the economic contribution which the airline makes to the US.
Etihad Airways has issued a report claiming that the three largest US airlines have received over $70 billion in government and court-sanctioned benefits.
The group has disputed the evidence and conclusions that unfair subsidies are being provided by the Gulf States to Gulf carriers contained in the White Paper which has been prepared by American Airlines, Delta and United.
The Emirates boss spoke forcefully about the open skies row, in which the American carriers have claimed that Emirates, Etihad and Qatar have all received $44 billion in subsidies from their governments, and are planning to seek US government action against them.
Etihad Airways first commenced flights to Singapore’s Changi International Airport on September 28, 2007 on a three times weekly basis, growing to a daily schedule from February 1, 2013. The route is currently served using an Airbus A330-200 but from June 1, 2015 the airline is using a three-class A330-300, supporting the debut of the First Class offering on the route.
The US departments have said the allegations from American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines through its ‘Partnership for Open and Fair Skies’ coalition of around $42 billion in unfair state subsidies to Emirates Airline, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways deserves a public hearing, so arguments from both sides will be collected in a public forum, on a regulatory website.
Every month Routesonline provides an update on the current schedules of five latest aircraft programmes, highlighting the routes the types are being deployed upon.
The airline will offer a three times weekly link between Mahe and Paris Charles De Gaulle from July 1, 2015, using an Airbus A330-200, replacing the current twice weekly offering via the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
France and Germany are leading a call for the European Union to ensure fair competition between EU airlines and those from the Gulf region, who are accused of receiving major state backing.
While urging the US government to engage in consultations with the UAE and Qatar to address the capacity of the Gulf carriers into the United States, there is a call from the US majors for the US government to immediately call on these countries to halt the creation of any new routes into US market until the consultations are complete.
