Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, will increase its Abu Dhabi-Moscow services from seven flights per week to double daily from June 1, and then to triple daily from October 1.

The carrier commenced operations to the Russian capital’s Domodedovo airport (DME) in December 2008, and since then has carried more than 400,000 travellers. In 2013 passenger volumes rose 36 per cent compared to 2012 levels, achieving double-digit growth for the fourth consecutive year.

James Hogan, president and chief executive officer of Etihad Airways, said: “The UAE is home to almost 25,000 Russians and 400 Russia-UAE joint venture companies, and as a result, the business and cultural ties between the two countries have never been stronger.

“With flights three times per day, Etihad Airways provides more convenient services to Abu Dhabi, the UAE and across our global network.

“Etihad Airways will offer 31 per cent of the weekly frequencies between the UAE and Moscow, providing more direct flights than any other carrier,” he said.

Important new connections will include flights to and from the Maldives, Seychelles, Phuket, and Ho Chi Minh City, as well as new business and leisure destinations such as Brisbane, Chengdu, Kathmandu, Lagos, Manila, Nairobi, Perth and Singapore.

Elsewhere, the triple daily flights will see more and improved connections to Bahrain, Bangkok, Doha, Jakarta, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, Kuwait, Lahore, Muscat, Riyadh and Sydney.

The flight schedule will also boost onward codeshare connectivity with S7 Airlines beyond the Russian capital to the cities of Kazan, Krasnodar, Saint Petersburg and Samara.

Etihad Airways plans to operate a two-cabin Airbus A320 aircraft between Abu Dhabi and Moscow for the triple daily service, meaning 5,712 seats a week – 672 in Pearl Business class, and 5,040 in Coral Economy class. - TradeArabia News Service