Etihad Airways, the Abu Dhabi-based national airline of the UAE, will launch its first all economy class aircraft into its fleet in October 2010. The two Airbus A320s will be configured to carry 162 economy class passengers which is an addition of 42 from the present economy capacity.

The entire economy cabin aircraft will function to short haul Etihad destinations, which have soaring demand for economy traffic and low demand for premium traffic. Initially these destinations will include Alexandria, Calicut, Colombo, Damascus, Doha and Thiruvananthapuram.


Plans are in place to widen the all economy fleet to 10 A320 aircraft which will facilitate the airline to launch new short haul destinations which have low demand for premium travel and also to existing Etihad destinations.

James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ Chief Executive Officer stated that Etihad has developed at an extraordinary pace during the past six and a half years.He also added that Etihad has built a strong brand and a strong business, and it is the right time to challenge the way we serve our diverse markets and segments.

He added that the all economy aircraft will permit Etihad to provide a more competitive product in key point-to-point markets in Asia, the Middle East, North Africa and the Indian Subcontinent, while maintaining the high standards of service we have become famous for.

Customers traveling on the fresh 'all economy' aircraft will obtain the same world class service and product that is featured on the present narrow body fleet, such as seat back in-flight entertainment screens as well as hot and cold meals and beverages.