Emirates Airline and Etihad Airways have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to expand their interline agreement.
The “first of its kind agreement between the two carriers aims to capitalise on opportunities to boost tourism to the UAE by enabling visitors to experience more than one destination in a single itinerary.
Customers of each airline will be able to purchase a single ticket to fly into either Dubai or Abu Dhabi, with a seamless return via the other airport.
The new agreement also means that travellers planning to explore the UAE can do so with the flexibility of one-stop ticketing for their full journey and convenient baggage check-in.
In the initial stages of the expanded interline, each carrier will focus on attracting visitors to the UAE by developing inbound interline traffic from select points in Europe and China.
The arrangement will allow visitors to cover as much ground as possible when exploring Abu Dhabi, Dubai or any other emirate, saving time by removing the need to fly home via their arrival airport.
Customers travelling into the UAE also have the option of ‘multi-city flights’, with the choice to travel from one city on both carriers’ networks.
The MoU was signed at Arabian Travel Market by Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Chief Commercial Officer, and Mohammad Al Bulooki, Chief Operating Officer, Etihad Airways, in the presence of Sir Tim Clark, President, Emirates Airline, and Antonoaldo Neves, Etihad CEO, along with other senior representatives.
Sir Tim Clark, President, Emirates Airline said: “We are pleased to be working again with Etihad Airways – this time to allow each carrier to offer a new range of seamless travel options in and out of the UAE.
“Emirates and Etihad are leveraging on our strengths to expand our respective customer offerings and boost UAE tourism.
“We believe this new agreement provides a strong foundation to develop further opportunities between both airlines and is an example of our commitment to the UAE’s vision for continued economic diversification.”
Antonoaldo Neves, Chief Executive Officer, Etihad Airways, said:
“We’re delighted to partner with Emirates in our shared mission to support inbound tourism to the UAE and facilitate travel to our vibrant cities.
“With two world-class airlines supporting UAE tourism, our interline agreement will make it more convenient for our guests to experience the best of Abu Dhabi and Dubai on one single ticket while promising to deliver an exceptional flying experience whether they fly with Etihad Airways or Emirates.
“It’s a win-win proposition for travellers to the UAE.”
Emirates serves the UK with 126 weekly flights, including six daily flights to London Heathrow; double daily service to London Stansted; three times daily service to Gatwick; three times daily to Manchester; double daily service to Birmingham; daily service to Newcastle; and a daily service to Glasgow.
Emirates also has plans to enhance its operations to and from Birmingham, with the return of the iconic A380 aircraft starting from 1 July.
Tickets can be booked on www.emirates.com, www.etihad.com, with Online Travel Agencies, as well as travel agents.
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