More air travellers to and from the Levant and Far East will soon be able to enjoy flying aboard Etihad Airways' new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners.
With a phased delivery of nine Boeing 787-9s this year, the jetliners will gradually be introduced on a number of routes from the airline’s Abu Dhabi hub beginning March 1, Etihad said.
The 299-seat Dreamliners will be deployed on daily year-round scheduled services to Jordan and Lebanon, as well as to Beijing, Shanghai and South Korea. In addition, the 787-9 will operate seasonally to Athens during the summer months.
Etihad currently operates a fleet of 10 Boeing 787-9s to nine destinations – Düsseldorf, Zurich, Perth, Brisbane, Tokyo, Singapore, Riyadh, Johannesburg and Washington – from Abu Dhabi. With a further 61 Dreamliners due to be delivered over the next few years, the 787s will become Etihad's' flagship long-haul aircraft, the carrier said.
“Since introducing our first 787 into commercial service almost two years ago, we have enjoyed excellent feedback from guests on our ground-breaking cabin interiors that have set a benchmark for high service levels in the region and across the world,” said Peter Baumgartner, the Etihad Airways chief executive.
“With the additional cities joining our 787 network during 2017, we are giving more guests the opportunity to fly on our next generation aircraft.
“Today’s travellers are increasingly looking for greater comfort, higher standards, more choice and better convenience as priorities in their decision-making and we, at Etihad Airways, are striving to meet their high expectations,” he added.
Etihad’s Boeing 787-9s include 28 business studios and 271 economy seats.
The 787-9 is proving popular with Chinese airlines, too.
China’s Juneyao Airlines has announced an order for 10 Boeing 787-9s, comprising five firm orders and five options.
At a list price of between US$189 million and $200m each, that would equate to an investment of up to $2 billion. The aircraft will facilitate the Shanghai-based carrier’s rapid international expansion, it said.
According to the airline’s filing released by the Shanghai Stock Exchange on Tuesday, Juneyao is scheduled to take delivery of three 787s in 2018 and two in 2019, which will increase capacity by 9.2 per cent in 2018 and 4.4 per cent per cent in 2019.
If the five options are converted into firm orders, the carrier will introduce one 787 in 2019 and four in 2020, which will increase capacity by 6.6 per ent in 2019 and 8.9 per cent in 2020.
Etihad’s new service times are as follows: From March 1, the daily flight EY 862 to Shanghai departs Abu Dhabi at 22:10 and arrives in the Chinese city at 10:10am +1. The return flight, EY 867, leaves at 23:30 and arrives back in Abu Dhabi at 06:30 +1.
From March 26, the daily service to Amman in Jordan, EY 513 leaves the UAE capital at10:30am and arrives in Amman at 12:40. The return EY 514 flight departs the Jordanian capital at 15:05, landing back in Abu Dhabi at 19:05.
The seasonal daily flight to Athens in Greece, EY 91, starts on June 1 and runs until September 30. It leaves at 08:45am, arriving in the Greek capital at 13:00. The return EY 90 leaves Athens at 14:25, arriving back in Abu Dhabi at 20:20.
From July 1, the daily year-round service to Beijing, flight EY 888, departs Abu Dhabi at 21:30, arriving in the Chinese capital at 08:50am +1. The return EY 889 service leaves Beijing at 01:25am and arrives back in Abu Dhabi at 06:30am.
The daily flight EY 876 to Seoul, South Korea, effective from August 1, leaves Abu Dhabi at Seoul, arriving in the Korean capital at 11:55 +1. The return leg leaves Seoul at 00:55am, arriving in Abu Dhabi at 05:50am.
And finally, also as of August 1, the daily service to Beirut, EY 535, leaves Abu Dhabi at 09:20am, landing in the Lebanese capital at 12:40. The return EY 538 leaves Beirut at 14:05 landing back in Abu Dhabi at Abu Dhabi 19:30.
chnelson@thenational.ae
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