31 Oct 2015 14:30
Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), is expanding its Saudi Arabian network through a new five-times-per-week service between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi operated by its codeshare partner flynas.
Commencing on 16 December 2015, the new flynas service will
complement Etihad Airways’ existing 13 weekly flights between Abu Dhabi and
Riyadh, to provide guests with 18 weekly flights and greater choice and
flexibility whether travelling from Saudi Arabia, the UAE or beyond.
The flights will be operated by a two-class Airbus A320 aircraft,
offering an additional 1,640 seats per week, and ensuring maximum connectivity through
Etihad Airways’ Abu Dhabi hub to key destinations in North America and the
Indian Subcontinent.
This
comes as part of an expanded codeshare agreement between the two airlines,
which was initially signed in October 2012. The
current codeshare scope allows flynas to place its ‘XY’ code on 226 Etihad
Airways’ flights between Abu Dhabi and 20 destinations around the world.
These include Amsterdam, Brussels, Casablanca, Dammam, Geneva, Islamabad,
Jakarta, Jeddah, Karachi, Kuala Lumpur, Lahore, London, Manchester, Medina, Paris,
Riyadh, São Paulo, Seychelles, Singapore, Zurich, and subsequently on flights
operating to the Indian Subcontinent over the coming months, subject to
regulatory approvals.
Kevin Knight, Etihad Airways’ Chief Strategy and Planning Officer,
said: “Riyadh is an important strategic destination for us due to the
established cultural and commercial ties between the UAE and Saudi Arabia. The
new flynas Riyadh service will strengthen our Saudi Arabian network further, but
more importantly, it will give business and leisure travellers greater choice
and better flight connections in their travel to Abu Dhabi and on to Etihad
Airways’ worldwide network.”
Bander Al Mohanna, NAS Holding CEO, said: “We are delighted to
partner with Etihad Airways to add Abu Dhabi to flynas’ destinations within the
GCC. flynas continues to expand across the region and by adding Abu Dhabi to
our GCC route network, we are significantly increasing both capacity and choice for
travellers, including pilgrims as well as business commuters and leisure
seekers. Moreover, we expect the mix of people travelling on the Abu Dhabi route to include
flynas’ guests in transit to other destinations, which will substantially
increase the volume of codeshare
traffic.”
Etihad Airways has 49 codeshare
agreements in place with airlines across the world, including flynas,
which gives it a combined passenger and cargo network
of 600 destinations, and over 25,200 flights per week, more than any
other Middle Eastern airline. Codeshare partnerships, along
with minority equity investments and organic growth, form
the three pillars of Etihad Airways expansion plans.
Etihad
Airways launched services between Abu Dhabi and Riyadh in December 2004. The
airline offers 46 flights per week between the UAE’s capital and the Saudi
Arabian cities of Jeddah, Damman, Riyadh and Medina. Services are often
increased to 55 flights per week on temporary operating permits.
Etihad Airways and flynas Riyadh – Abu Dhabi schedule
effective 16 December 2015:
Flgt
No. |
Orgn |
Dep |
Dest |
Arr |
Freq |
Aircraft |
EY315 |
Abu Dhabi |
02:00 |
Riyadh |
2:50 |
Daily |
A330-300 |
EY316 |
Riyadh |
04:00 |
Abu Dhabi |
7:10 |
Daily |
A330-300 |
EY317 |
Abu Dhabi |
11:55 |
Riyadh |
12:55 |
Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun |
A340-600 |
EY318 |
Riyadh |
16:00 |
Abu Dhabi |
18:45 |
Tue, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun |
A340-600 |
XY609 |
Abu Dhabi |
14:45 |
Riyadh |
15:45 |
Tue, Wed, Thu, Sat, Sun |
A320 |
XY608 |
Riyadh |
09:45 |
Abu Dhabi |
12:45 |
Tue, Wed, Thu, Sat, Sun |
A320 |
Note: All
departures and arrivals are listed in local time.