Hello World
Etihad Airways has been trying to grow in a slow but sustainable way in recent years, and the airline has just announced its two newest destinations.
Etihad will fly to two more European destinations
As of the summer of 2025, Etihad will launch service to Prague and Warsaw. This will be the first time that Etihad flies to Poland and Czechia.
As of June 2, 2025, Etihad will fly 4x weekly between Abu Dhabi (AUH) and Prague (PRG), with the following schedule:
EY155 Abu Dhabi to Prague departing 2:50AM arriving 7:15AM
EY156 Prague to Abu Dhabi departing 11:20AM arriving 7:07PM
The 2,778-mile flight will operate on Sundays, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. It’s blocked at 6hr25min westbound and 5hr45min eastbound.
As of June 3, 2025, Etihad will fly 4x weekly between Abu Dhabi (AUH) and Warsaw (WAW), with the following schedule:
EY159 Abu Dhabi to Warsaw departing 2:45AM arriving 6:50AM
EY160 Warsaw to Abu Dhabi departing 11:15AM arriving 7:00PM
The 2,594-mile flight will operate on Sundays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. It’s blocked at 6hr5min westbound and 5hr45min eastbound.
Etihad will use a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner for both routes, featuring 28 business class seats and 262 economy class seats.
Interesting Etihad explains how both Poland and Czechia have been a growing source of tourists for the UAE. Here’s how Etihad CEO Antonoaldo Neves describes this new service:
“We are proud to introduce Warsaw and Prague as our newest destinations, reflecting our commitment to expanding into new and exciting markets. These routes not only enrich our network but also offer a great opportunity to strengthen ties with these countries and attract more visitors to Abu Dhabi. We see this as a key part of our growth strategy, helping to drive tourism and support the UAE’s vision for the future.”
This growth seems logical enough
It’s cool to see Etihad continue to grow and add more destinations, and Prague and Warsaw seem like logical places for the carrier to add service to. For what it’s worth, these are both destinations served by competitors Emirates and Qatar Airways, so Etihad isn’t exactly going into uncharted territory here.
While Etihad highlights how there has been a growing number of tourists in the UAE from Prague and Warsaw, presumably this is also intended to feed into the larger network, for people connecting to other points in the Middle East, as well as Africa, the Indian Subcontinent, Australia, etc.
The one thing I’m maybe a bit surprised by is that Etihad is choosing to fly a Boeing 787-9 in these markets 4x weekly, rather than flying its new Airbus A321LRs daily. It seems like if you’re going to enter a new market, it’s better to start with a smaller plane and daily frequencies.
Then again, perhaps this is just a function of the delivery timeline for Etihad’s swanky new narrow body jet. Etihad is supposed to take delivery of its first Airbus A321LRs in the summer of 2025, and they might not be delivered quite in time for this service.
Etihad is continuing to take delivery of new wide body jets, so I guess the airline has planes to spare, while the timeline for the A321LR is less certain, especially with the jet getting new cabins.
Bottom line
Etihad has announced two new routes for the summer of 2025, from Abu Dhabi to Prague and Warsaw. Both routes will operate 4x weekly using Boeing 787-9s. It’s cool to see Etihad expanding its network, and I’m looking forward to seeing what’s next.
What do you make of Etihad adding flights to Prague and Warsaw?