Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, has introduced its fifth weekly flight between Abu Dhabi and Khartoum, marking the fifth anniversary of non-stop services.

The airline commenced operations to the capital of Sudan in July 2006, and since then has carried more than 200,000 travellers and nearly 6.5 million tons of cargo on the route.

“Etihad is experiencing a period of rapid expansion with the launch of many exciting new destinations and the arrival of new aircraft,” said James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ chief executive officer.

“Our services to Khartoum have exceeded our expectations over the past five years, and we are pleased to be able to build on this success with an additional flight. Khartoum is a special destination for us due to the established cultural and commercial ties between Sudan and the UAE.”

Etihad Crystal Cargo has been successfully operating freighter flights to Khartoum for more than six years. Currently cargo freighter operations between Abu Dhabi and Khartoum offer a payload of up to 46 tonnes on each flight, three times a week.

“Cargo services have been extremely successful, with the capacity being well utilized. We look forward to building on these high payloads and gaining new customers,” added Hogan.

Etihad currently operates a two cabin Airbus A320-200 aircraft between Abu Dhabi and Khartoum, configured to carry 136 passengers – 16 in Pearl business and 120 in Coral economy.

Mohamed ElNoman, Etihad’s country manager for Sudan, said: "Etihad has enjoyed consistently high load factors across all cabins since the launch of services between Khartoum and Abu Dhabi in 2006 and we are very proud of that success.”

“The additional weekly flight will open new horizons for our commercial activities in the Sudan and will offer our customers more flexibility in their travel to Abu Dhabi and onto the airline’s worldwide network. As well, the recently announced operations to Chengdu and Shanghai in China will add extra value for our clients from Sudan,” he added. – TradeArabia News Service