Etihad Airways to increase flights to India

Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), will start final round of talks with aviation ministry officials in the third week of this month, seeking to start new services connecting Abu Dhabi to Indian cites. Etihad Airways expects to get the nod to operate direct flights between UAE to Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad. At present, it operates seven flights from Mumbai and three from Delhi. The airline also aims to double its services from Mumbai and Delhi to Abu Dhabi. It has plans to start services to Sydney, Milan, Dublin, Shanghai and Kathmandu. “A team of Etihad Airways will meet Indian aviation officials in the third week of March. We want to start operations to Banaglore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad,” Neeraja Bhatia, Manager- West & South, Etihad Airways said.

The airline has placed orders for of 29 new aircraft - Boeing 777s and Airbus 320s, 340s and 380s for $8 billion. Etihad Airways recognised the need to add new cities due to large Indian community in the Gulf, UK and North America. With Indian visitors to UAE increasing at 30% annually, Etihad expects revenues from the country to increase to about 20% in future, up from 12% currently. The four-year-old airline started with 10 aircraft. It has grown to 19 now. Etihad, which has invested $9 billion so far, currently operates to 35 destinations. During April-November 2006, international air passengers grew by 15.1%, against a 14.5% rise during the corresponding period in 2005. Total international passenger air traffic grew at lower pace, compared to the domestic traffic.

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