Contributor - Middle East

Peter Shaw-Smith

Latest news about Etihad Aviation Group and Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE.

Etihad Airways'&nbsp;core operating performance rose 15 percent in the 2018 fiscal year, ended December 31, on revenues of $5.86 billion, compared to $6.0 billion a year earlier. It also reported a "core airline"&nbsp;loss of $1.28 billion, compared to a loss of $1.52 billion in 2017, the company announced in March.
Last year saw the airline's third straight year of losses in excess of $1 billion. However, the slow and painstaking effort to rebuild saw it improve passenger yield 4 percent, reduce unit costs 3 percent, despite a 31 percent increase in fuel prices, and handle 17.8 million passengers, down from 18.6 million in 2017. Passenger revenue remained steady at $5.0 billion. Seat factor last year was 76.4 percent.
Available seat kilometers (ASKM) also fell from 115 billion in 2017 to 110.3 billion last year, as the airline pared the fleet from 115 aircraft to 106. Cargo volumes fell from 853,300 tonnes to 682,100 tonnes.
“Etihad Cargo recorded a strong performance for the year largely due to a lower cost base, a program of efficiency improvements, including the consolidation of the freighter fleet around the Boeing 777F, and a refreshed network focusing on core trade lanes, leveraging Abu Dhabi’s geographical position to maximize freighter to belly-hold flows,” a company press release said.
Etihad’s latest publicly available factsheet, issued in January 2019, said there were 102 aircraft in the fleet, including 30 Airbus A320 family, 12 A330s, 10 A380s, 26 Boeing 787s, 19 B777s and nine&nbsp;B777Fs, with an average age of 5.7 years. At that time, Etihad flew to 84 destinations and had 55 codeshares.
In 2018, Etihad Airways took delivery of eight new aircraft including three Boeing 787-9s, four Boeing 787-10s, and one Boeing 777-200 freighter.
According to a February report in the Abu Dhabi-based English language daily, The National, in 2013, Etihad ordered 87 Airbus aircraft, including 26 A321neos, and 40 A350-900s, and 25 Boeing 777Xs, part of a bigger agreement with the OEM for 56 aircraft.
“Following negotiations with Airbus and Boeing, revisions to Etihad’s forward fleet commitments were announced on 14 February 2019. Under these agreements, the airline will take delivery of five Airbus A350-1000, 26 Airbus A321neo, and six Boeing 777-9 aircraft in the coming years,” the airline&nbsp;said.
“In 2018, we continued to forge ahead with our transformation journey by streamlining our cost base, improving our cash-flow and strengthening our balance sheet,” said Tony Douglas, CEO of Etihad Aviation Group, who took over in September&nbsp;2017. “Our transformation is instilling a renewed sense of confidence in our customers, our partners, and our people. As a major enabler of commerce and tourism to and from Abu Dhabi, we are intrinsically linked to the continued success of the emirate.”
Etihad Cargo, the airline's cargo and logistics arm, announced September 25 its winter schedule and network plan to come into effect on September 29, with new weekly freighter services marking an increased presence in the U.S. and other strategic global cargo markets. It said this would involve the enhancement of its freighter services between Abu Dhabi International Airport (AUH) and Columbus, Ohio.
“A weekly service, now via Europe to Ohio’s Rickenbacker International Airport (LCK), will be supported by an extensive road feeder network between LCK and other U.S. destinations including Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, and Philadelphia,” the airline said. “The outbound flight will operate via Frankfurt (FRA) and return via Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS). Etihad Cargo plans to introduce a second weekly flight to LCK, opening up an additional European gateway before the end of the year.”
Etihad Cargo’s updated freighter network also introduced a weekly Boeing 777 freighter service into Johannesburg’s Tambo International Airport (JNB) as of October 5, as well as additional belly-hold capacity introduced through increased flights between Abu Dhabi and London Heathrow Airport (LHR), with a fourth daily frequency confirmed from October 27.

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