Summary
Etihad Airways is about to introduce its new fleet of Airbus A350 aircraft into service after a lengthy wait.
The aircraft are the larger A350-1041 variant, featuring a mix of Business and Economy cabins, with no First Class offered, having taken a step back from this offering on many of its aircraft.
The aircraft were actually completed and delivered a few years ago, but sat in storage at Bordeaux and elsewhere pending a return to normality following the Covid-19 pandemic, when business justified introducing the type into active service.
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Where Will Etihad’s A350s Fly?
The first service to be operated by Etihad’s A350s will be Abu Dhabi to Paris Charles de Gaulle on 31 March 2022. This will be a one-off service.
After the Paris service, the initial schedule will include many regional destinations, presumably as a measure to increase crew familiarity of the new type, before further long-haul destinations are added at a later date.
The inital A350 destination list is:
- Abu Dhabi – Cairo – Operates 2 May to 30 June 2022
- Abu Dhabi – Delhi – Operates 30 April to 30 June 2022
- Abu Dhabi – Istanbul – Operates 1 April to 30 June 2022
- Abu Dhabi – Jeddah – Operates 3 April to 30 June 2022
- Abu Dhabi – Mumbai – Operates 1 April to 30 June 2022
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Etihad’s A350 Fleet
Etihad A350s recently in storage at Bordeaux, now entering service. Photo (c) Erik Ritterbach.
Etihad Airways has 5 Airbus A350-1041 aircraft in its fleet, with 15 more on order. They will be delivered by the end of 2023, and start to replace older Boeing 777-300ER aircraft.
The current fleet comprises:
- A6-XWA (cn 315)
- A6-XWB (cn 290)
- A6-XWC (cn 330)
- A6-XWE (cn 388)
- A6-XWF (cn 388)
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Etihad and the A350F
Etihad Cargo, A350F#avgeek #Etihad #Airbus #A350F pic.twitter.com/BbvIY1Y9yu
— La Livery (@la_livery) February 16, 2022
Etihad became a recent customer for the new Airbus A350F freighter variant.
At the Singapore Airshow, the airline signed a Letter of Intent for seven of the type, which will operate alongside its passenger variants
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