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| Etihad Airways' EY441 arrivies in HCM City in a ceremonial water cannon salute. Photo Etihad Airways.—VNS Photo |
HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Etihad Airways (EA), the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, officially launched its direct flights between Abu Dhabi and HCM City on Wednesday.
Peter Baumgartner, Etihad Airways Commercial Director, told local media that the first flight arrived in HCM City on Tuesday, adding that the airline offered daily flights between the destinations in 7 hours with the Airbus A330-200s.
EA will provide 3,700 seats every week, aiming to meet the demands of travellers and investors, and carry freight between Viet Nam and the UAE, Middle East and Europe.
Viet Nam has become one of six new destinations for EA this year, bringing the total number of EA destinations around the globe to 94, including the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia and America.
EA representative said the airline, which currently owns 80 planes and 51 others in the near future, was also considering the possibility of opening routes from Abu Dhabi to Ha Noi in the near future, while it was recruiting Vietnamese employees for its flights from and to Viet Nam .
EA also held a contest on Facebook called " Viet Nam Eats " to celebrate the new route with the collaboration of award-winning celebrity chef, Luke Nguyen, in which participants could send in their best photos of Vietnamese dishes. The winner would receive 1 pair of return tickets from anywhere on EA 's flight routes to HCM City.
UAE is the seventh largest trading partner and the largest partner ofViet Nam in the Gulf. In 2012, Viet Nam's export turnover to the UAE exceeded US$2 billion for the first time, an increase of 82 per cent compared to 2011, and is predicted to reach over $4 billion this year.— VNS