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Etihad Airways

Aviation

Latest Etihad Airways DevelopmentsAI Insights

Anticipation surrounds Etihad Airways' upcoming initial public offering, expected to raise $1 billion through the sale of 20 percent of the company's shares5.

Etihad Airways CEO Antonoaldo Neves noted that Etihad Airways did not see significant impact from US tariff policies and maintained strong seat occupancy levels. The company plans to expand its fleet and add 20 to 22 aircraft in 20252.

The company expanded its fleet by 10 percent to 98 aircraft by March 2025. The number of passenger destinations increased to 73 compared to 69 in March 20243. Middle East airlines, including Etihad Airways, will expand fleets at almost twice the global average rate over the next decade, including a rise in narrow-body planes4.

Etihad Airways' acquisition strategy resulted in financial losses when three airlines it invested in went bankrupt, culminating in a $1.87 billion loss in 20161.

Etihad Airways Overview

Etihad Airways is the national airline of the UAE. “Etihad” means “union” or “unity” in Arabic and is intended to represent the unity of the UAE’s seven emirates.

Based in Abu Dhabi, Etihad is owned by the Abu Dhabi Developmental Holding Company (ADQ, and the Abu Dhabi Developmental Holding Company, which also owns other aviation entities like Abu Dhabi Airports and Wizz Air Abu Dhabi.

Etihad is planning to invest $7 billion over the next five years and to double the size of its fleet by 2030 as it prepares to go public in an IPO.

Etihad has around 90 passenger aircraft and five Boeing 777 cargo freighters. It has ordered a further 95 – 12 were scheduled for 2024 and a further 23 in 2025.

Etihad flies to more than 80 destinations. New additions scheduled for 2025 are Algiers, Atlanta, Chiang Mai, El Alamein , Hanoi, Krabi, Phnom Penh, Prague, Taipei, Tunis and Warsaw.

In 2025 Etihad also plans to double its routes and frequencies to Africa and offer daily services to Dusseldorf and Copenhagen.

Etihad Airways News

Etihad Boeing Antonoaldo Neves

Etihad comfortable with Boeing deliveries as profit rises

Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways, which posted record profit in the first quarter, said it expects to take delivery of at least 100 planes from US plane maker Boeing over the next five years, helping to equip its route expansion plans. “We’re getting more than 20 planes a year for the next five years,” Etihad Airways […]

An Airbus A380 from Global Airlines on the southern runway at Berlin Airport

Ex-Etihad CEO James Hogan takes stake in UK’s Global Airlines

James Hogan, the former Etihad Airways chief executive who was at the helm during the airline’s loss-making expansion, is set to become a shareholder in the UK’s Global Airlines, a startup attempting to bring the Airbus A380 back into commercial service. Hogan’s advisory firm, Knighthood Global, will take a stake in Global Airlines and advise […]

Qatar Airways profit A Qatar Airways Boeing 787 Dreamliner; the airline's growing fleet  was made up of 292 aircraft at March 31

Qatar Airways announces record profit but risks remain

State-owned Qatar Airways announced record profits in the year to March 31 after carrying more passengers and using its seat capacity more efficiently. Net income jumped almost 30 percent to QAR7.9 billion ($2.2 billion) in the 2024-25 fiscal year, an increase of more than QAR1.7billion on the year before. Passenger numbers rose almost 8 percent […]

President Trump struck numerous deals over his three days in the Gulf

The multi-trillion dollar deals agreed on Trump’s trip

During his trip to the Gulf region from May 13 to 16, US president Donald Trump visited Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE and announced a series of deals across a number of sectors, which, according to the White House, added up to nearly $2.5 trillion. Artificial intelligence Saudi Arabia’s newly-established AI developer Humain said […]

Passengers boarding a Flydubai flight in Dubai. The airline operates 30 flights a week from Dubai to eight Indian cities

Flydubai CEO says demand exists to quadruple India flights

Flydubai believes it has the capacity to quadruple its flights to India, saying the demand is there. However, Delhi’s protectionist aviation policies remain a stumbling block to the Gulf’s biggest low-cost carrier by fleet size, as well as other UAE airlines. Flydubai currently operates 30 flights a week from Dubai to eight Indian cities.  “India […]

The agreement includes a mix of Boeing 787 and 777X aircraft, powered by GE Aerospace engines and supported by a services package

Etihad Airways commits $15bn for 28 Boeing jets

Etihad Airways has invested $14.5 billion in 28 Boeing aircraft. Since 2023, the UAE’s national airline has grown its fleet as part of a long-term strategy to double in size by 2030.   The agreement includes a mix of Boeing 787 and 777X aircraft, powered by GE Aerospace engines and supported by a services package, […]

Workers inspect a Flynas jet on the tarmac in Riyadh. The IPO could value Flynas at up to $3.7bn

Flynas to test appetite for airline IPOs as Gulf rivals look on

Low-cost carrier Flynas is preparing to go public on the Saudi Exchange this month in a deal that is being watched not only by investors but also by Gulf rivals considering their own listings, analysts have told AGBI. Among them is Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways, whose long-anticipated initial public offering could be shaped by Flynas’ […]

Passenger numbers have fallen at Kuwait International, but are soaring at airports elsewhere in the Gulf

Kuwait’s aviation industry loses altitude as foreign airlines exit

Kuwait’s ambitions for its aviation industry are faltering as a growing number of international carriers quit the market and airport upgrades are delayed. British Airways ceased its daily service from London in March, ending more than 60 years of operations. This follows withdrawals from Kuwait International Airport (KWI) by at least 14 other airlines since 2019, […]

Flydubai operates a fleet of 88 Boeing 737s but wants to expand into longer-haul routes with 787 aircraft

Boeing delays are hampering Flydubai expansion, says CEO

Delays in the delivery of Flydubai’s first wide-body aircraft from Boeing are hampering the carrier’s expansion into long-haul routes and it may seek compensation, its CEO has told AGBI. The low-cost carrier is waiting for 30 Boeing 787-9 twin-aisle planes, part of an $11 billion deal announced at the 2023 Dubai Airshow.  The first deliveries […]