Etihad Airways starts Abu Dhabi-Hyderabad flights

Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has started flights between Abu Dhabi and Hyderabad, the capital of the state of Andhra Pradesh in India.

Etihad Airways has thus become the first airline to operate service between Abu Dhabi and Hyderabad.

To start with, there are 4 flights a week, which will raised to daily flights from the beginning of 2010.

Hyderabad is Etihad Airways’ 7^th destination in India – the other 6 cities being New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram Kochi and Kozhikode.

Now, the airline operates a total of 42 flights a week to India.

On the new Abu Dhabi-Hyderabad route, Etihad Airways is using Airbus A320 aircraft, having two classes and configured to carry 140 passengers – 20 passengers in the business-class and 120 passengers in the economy-class.

Hyderabad – which is rich in its rich culture, history and architecture – has recently become known as a modern centre for industries connected with information technology and biotechnology as well as a suitable location to conduct conferences and exhibitions.

The city is also known as a centre for movie-making and is home to the world’s largest film studio, called Ramoji Film City.

In a statement, James Hogan, CEO of Etihad Airways, said that his company is “thrilled” to have launched a service between Abu Dhabi and Hyderabad. Both Abu Dhabi and Hyderabad, he added, are “growing, dynamic cities” and that the new service would give a boost to bilateral commercial relations.

Etihad Airways, James Hogan stressed in the statement, is committed to serving the Indian market and that business and leisure traffic is increasingly heading to cities like Hyderabad via the carrier’s base in Abu Dhabi.

Sripathy, chief executive officer of GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited, said in a press release that the authorities of the airport are “delighted to welcome Etihad Airways to Hyderabad” and the new service will offer the passengers wishing to fly to from Hyderabad to the United Arab Emirates a wider choice.