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FIVE years ago, Etihad Airways started with just three weekly flights to Sydney from Abu Dhabi, a humble beginning with only a handful of staff. Today EY offers double daily flights ex-SYD and also flies out of Melbourne and Brisbane, employing over 400 staff. Last night it celebrated its 5th anniversary in typical Etihad style entertaining over 400 industry leaders at Sydney’s Sofitel Wentworth Hotel where CEO James Hogan said the carrier now operates 40 weekly flights in conjunction with Virgin Australia to the UAE capital, connecting to over 84 destinations worldwide. He said Etihad has carried 1.7 million pax to Australia over Abu Dhabi and more than 8 million worldwide, and thanks to its partnership with Virgin Australia, has now moved into profitability. “We’ve delivered on our mandate which was to create a safe, best-in-class airline, all those boxes we’ve now ticked off,” the EY chief said. Hogan said Etihad is in pretty good shape to tackle the opportunities that lie ahead, with huge aircraft orders, including 10 A380 super jumbo’s, which he plans to fly to Sydney, and 100 more Airbus and Boeing jets to arrive over the next 10 years. “We’re also looking at how we can strengthen our partnership with Virgin Australia. “Building on that codeshare, building on that network for our guests is very important,” he added. The recent 30% acquisition of Air Berlin, Europe’s 6th largest airline that carries 35 million pax a year, offers connectivity to a whole new range of cities. “Our future plans will see us operate into Lagos, Chengdu, China and Washington DC, offering one-stop for Australian pax. And in 2013 we also move into South America.” Pictured above flanked by EY cabin crew, from left are: Lindsay White, regional gm Australasia Etihad; James Hogan, ceo Etihad; His Excellency Ali Alnaimy, UAE Ambassador & Khaled Almehairbi, EY’s vp govt & aeropolitical affairs. |
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