6. Safety card from an Etihad airways A340-500, 2003

To mark the nation's 40th anniversary, we feature 40 historic objects.

A safety card from an Etihad Airbus A340, 2003. To mark the nation's 40th anniversary, we are featuring 40 historic objects in a series from Sunday to Thursday weekly until December 1. Visit <a href="http://www.thenational.ae/40@40">40@40</a> for videos documenting the stories behind the objects.

The History Project Team

Dec 01, 2011

On November 5, 2003, an Airbus freshly painted in the livery of Etihad Airways thundered down the runway of Abu Dhabi International Airport.
On that short ceremonial flight to Al Ain, the world's fastest-growing commercial airline was born. Barely a week later, Etihad was in business, with services to Beirut, and, in December, to Amman and Damascus.
Eight years later, the airline has services to 67 destinations in 45 countries, from Alexandria to Toyko. By March of this year, Etihad was operating 57 aircraft, with plans to introduce 103 more by 2020. At the UK's Farnborough International Airshow in 2008, Etihad placed the largest order in commercial aviation history, for up to 208 aircraft.
The airline was created by royal decree in July 2003 under the chairmanship of Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Everything had to be ready soon after, from the uniforms for aircrew to this safety card, tucked in the back of every seat pocket.
This particular card dates from the airline's first year of operation, and comes from an Airbus A340-500, a wide-bodied, long-haul jet that was introduced in 2003 as the world's longest-range commercial aircraft, capable of flying 313 passengers up to 16,000 kilometres.
Etihad lists four A340-500s in its current fleet, along with 16 A330-200s, and seven A340-600s. The airline also operates six Boeing 777-300ERs and hopes to introduce the first of its superjumbo double-decker Airbus 380s, with a passenger capacity of 500, some time in 2014.
In the past eight years, Etihad has acquired a reputation not just for the rapidity of its growth, but also for the quality of its service. It was picked as the World's Leading Airline at the World Travel Awards last year, having already won the title in 2009. So far this year, Etihad has already won Airline of the Year at the TTG Travel Awards. In 2010 passenger numbers topped seven million, with revenues in excess of Dh10.7 billion. Etihad also employs around 8,000 staff from 120 countries and operates a training programme that this year saw 31 Emiratis graduate as pilots.