Etihad to start flights to MLE

Etihad Airways announced today that it will commence operations to Malé, the capital city of the Republic of Maldives, on November 1, subject to government approval.

Etihad will operate a daily return service from its home base in Abu Dhabi to Malé International Airport, operating Airbus A320 aircraft on the route, configured with two cabins and offering 1,904 seats each week.

James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ Chief Executive Officer, said: "Malé is the gateway to the premium leisure destination, the Maldive Islands, and given the strong increase in visitation numbers we are seeing in the market, the time is right to launch services to this popular holiday destination.”

Mr Hogan said the commencement of the services in November was perfectly timed to coincide with the start of the busy Northern winter period.

“We expect the services will appeal to UAE leisure travellers, as well as customers from our major European markets, particularly with the strong connectivity options on offer and following the additional frequencies that will come online on a number of our key European routes this summer,” he said.

“Etihad’s schedule, which offers an attractive afternoon arrival and evening departure, has been carefully designed to offer customers maximum leisure time at their destination. In fact, European travellers can take advantage of our overnight flights in both directions, offering them a full extra day in the Maldives.”

The Maldives is made up of close to 1,200 islands grouped into natural atolls; including 200 inhabited islands and 97 resort islands, with a population of close to 300,000 people*. The region features deep blue seas, sandy beaches and turquoise reefs, and with its tropical climate and warm temperatures year round, is a renowned honeymoon and leisure destination.



Etihad Holidays has special packages on offer for the most spectacular of the islands. Offering a wide range of experiences for all budgets, Etihad Holidays has developed tailored packages for honeymooners or families, sun worshippers or divers. The packages include flights, hotel accommodation and island transfers. For further information, call 800 2324 or visit an Etihad shop for more details.

Etihad Guest Members who book early and fly during the first 30 days of operation will be rewarded with twice as many Etihad Guest Miles. For further information, go to etihad.com. Terms and conditions apply.

Malé will become the 67th destination on Etihad’s global network.

EY 278 AUH - MLE 0915 1430 4hrs 15mins
EY 279 MLE - AUH 2040 0005+1 4hrs 25mins

source: arabianaerospace.aero

airliners.net forum

EK to increase flight to Asia Pacific region by 13%

Emirates Airlines will increase its seat load by 13 per cent for the Asia Pacific region in the next two months, as it adds more flights in expected demand growth.

Starting December 2009, Emirates will introduce a fourth daily service to Bangkok, a third daily service to Sydney, two additional flights to Manila and one additional service to Jakarta.

Between December 2009 and January 2010, 17 flights per week will be added. Post increase, the airline’s operation in Asia Pacific will escalate to 187 flights per week.

I think this is the main reason why Emirates is hiring cabin crews like crazy.

Existing flights that service MNL are EK332 and EK334 both by 77W which arrives in MNL at 1545 and 2230 respectively. Post expansion, operations will increase from 12 to 14 times weekly or a double daily service on every day of the week.

plus their new destination: LAD, three times weekly and increased flights to MRU, SEZ, MLE

MNL- Manila, Philippines

BKK- Bangkok, Thailand

CGK- Jakarta, Indonesia

SYD- Sydney, Australia

LAD- Luanda, Angola

MRU- Mauritius, Mauritius

SEZ- Mahe Island, Seychelles

MLE- Male, Maldives