Direct services to Washington DC from Etihad Airways

 Etihad Airways announces direct non-stop flight services to Washington DC. This service will make the airline’s fourth destination in the North America. This direct flight service from Etihad Airways is expected to start from March 2013, which is subject to change based on the regulatory approvals. Washington DC is the second largest market flying to the Middle East, after New York. The future Etihad Airways direct flight service to Washington DC will connect Abu Dhabi, which is one of the growing hubs for culture, business, and tourism.

The chief executive of Etihad Airways, James Hogan says “until now, there are no other services that connect UAE and Washington. Therefore, this non-stop flight service connecting the capital-to-capital will be a very good service, and there would be a warm welcome among the people”. Moreover, this service will also strengthen the economic ties and political relationships between the UAE and National Capital Region.

In the past week, the US department of commerce released a data that the business between the UAE and US of 18.3 billion dollars, which is 43% increase when compared to the previous year. This rise in the business will definitely create a further rise in the forth coming years. This also represents that UAE is the single largest export market in the Middle East to the US, from the past 3 consecutive years. United States is the UAE’s fifth largest trade partner in the world.

Hogan also believes that the direct flight service between the Abu Dhabi and DC will contribute significant loads in the route. This service also enables the connectivity to the GCC markets in the South East Asia and Indian Subcontinent.

This new direct non-stop flight service is expected to have three class A340-500 aircraft. The flight also offers 12 Diamond first class, 28 Pear Diamond class, and 200 coral economy seats. In total, there would be around 3360 seats per week.