The Hindu Business Line : Etihad Air to launch direct flights to Mumbai

THE Abu Dhabi-headquartered UAE airline, Etihad Airways, will be launching direct operations on the Abu Dhabi-Mumbai route from September 26 and is looking at launching direct services from New Delhi before the end of the year.

The direct service to Mumbai will be operated seven times a week. "We are definitely looking at expanding our presence in India after the launch of flights to Mumbai, which is a major Indian destination. We are seriously looking at launching direct services to New Delhi before the end of the year. Karachi in Pakistan is also on the cards later this year. We will also look at other Indian destinations in due course," a spokesman for the airline told Business Line. The airline spokesman said that with Mumbai on the airline's map, travellers from India could benefit from Etihad's onward convenient connections to London, Munich and Geneva.

Special launch prices are also being worked out as incentives for passengers, he said. The Mumbai route will be operated by Etihad with the wide bodied Airbus 330-200 aircraft. This will be Etihad's 11th destination since it was launched less than a year ago.

The airline currently has six aircraft in its fleet. The spokesman indicated that Etihad also plans to launch operations to the Far East.

"We will most probably use Bangkok as our hub for operations in the Far East and look at launching flights to Manila, Jakarta, Beijing and Japan," he added.