At the ITB tourism trade fair in Berlin, Etihad presented its new network offer, its business seat as well as the new Abu Dhabi pass offering numerous advantages to travellers in the Emirati capital. An opportunity to talk with Javier Alija, Vice President Global Sales & Distribution.
How is Etihad's offer growing?
Javier Alija- Our capacity in available seats/km [ASK...continues to grow. In 2023 and 2024, this capacity increased by 20% compared with the previous period. The same is true this year, with growth of over 20%. But with one major difference: we are expanding into many new markets whereas in previous years we tended to favour growth in supply in our existing markets.
Can you be more specific about this expansion in 2025?
Javier Alija - Last year, on the one hand, we strengthened where we were already landing. On the other, we launched new destinations in countries where we were already present. 2025 will be the biggest year in terms of line openings. We have never been so prolific in a single year. These are in fact 14 destinations to be inaugurated in 2025. Most will be in Asia. This will be an excellent opportunity for the French market. In particular with Chiang Mai and Krabi in Thailand, Hanoi in Vietnam, Medan in Indonesia, Phnom Penh Cambodia, Hong Kong and Taipei.
New destinations in Europe?
Javier Alija - On 2 June, we will be launching flights to Prague followed the next day by flights on Warsaw. We are also resuming our summer flights with the new IATA season at the end of March. For example, we are resuming our flights on Malaga, the Greek islands and Nice.
L'tax increase a deterrent to your expansion in a country?
Javier Alija - In the end, we have to live with these taxesThey are what they are and we have to take them into account in our assessment of the markets. They are what they are, and we have to factor them into our assessment of the markets. By way of example, we are continuing to grow in Germany despite the very sharp increases in taxes there. We are increasing to two daily flights to Frankfurt, whereas last year we only had 10 flights a week. The same applies to Düsseldorf, where we will be increasing to one daily flight throughout the year. So taxes have no influence on our choice of destination.If there is strong demand in these markets...
How are you positioned in relation to the competition from the Gulf?
Javier Alija - There are two factors driving our expansion. The first is the fact that we are ambassadors from the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi. When Abu Dhabi grows, we grow with it. It's a fact an increasingly popular destination [see box. for both business and leisure. It's an advantage for us because we have a strong position in this market and the demand is there.
The new terminal has also changed things for usThis is particularly important for transfer passengers. Before, the old terminal was not the most pleasant for a transfer. Today, we offer a very attractive product on the ground. But, paradoxically, as we have optimised our connecting waves, transits have become much faster. We'd like passengers to spend more time, but for reasons of competitiveness, journey times are kept as short as possible!
How many waves of connections do you offer your passengers from Europe?
Javier Alija - We are proposing two, but we are working on one. third wave of correspondence. This will be a reality for all our markets, except from London where we operate four flights a day. For example on ParisWe fly twice a day, including one flight in an Airbus A380.. But we are considering adding a third daily flight. Milan will be the first destination to benefit from this third flight. We also hope to offer this third daily flight to Paris, Frankfurt or Munich. But we're still talking about such a growth over one to one-and-a-half years.
Where does Africa fit in?
Javier Alija - This is an important market for us because the Gulf is investing heavily in this continent, particularly in East Africa. For example, we have launched a link to Nairobi last December. However, from the point of view of European travellers, Etihad does not offer the most convenient routes.
Is Etihad thinking of introducing a Premium Economy class?
Javier Alija - We do not have Premium Economy with a dedicated cabin. But we do offer the Economy Space "We are now looking into the possibility of adding a number of services to enhance the passenger experience in this area. We are now looking at the possibility of adding some services to improve the passenger experience in this section. I think that Premium Economy as it exists is a good product, but this new investment is not worth it at the moment.
Are you also working on improving the business class product?
Javier Alija - The new devices we will be receiving over the next few months will include a new business class. We currently have a fleet of aircraft of different ages. But over the next two years, we will invest around one billion dollars in cabin refurbishment across the entire fleet.
This will also involve First Class. We also want to offer First to all our long-haul destinations, and not just the most important markets. We want to be sure that after two years, most of our network will be equipped with a premier product or its equivalent. It will not necessarily be a dedicated cabin, but a segmentation of business class with several seating options.
