Abu Dhabi: Etihad Airways is bidding to lure private jet passengers back to the commercial airline market with its new premium Airbus A380 offering.
The Abu Dhabi carrier on Sunday revealed configurations for its Airbus A380 with hotel-style bedrooms on its fleet. “The Residence — by Etihad,” its A380 premium class offering, features a living room, separate double bedroom and an ensuite shower room. There will be just one “Residence” per A380 aircraft, according to Etihad.
It is a product of five years research and is an exclusive three-room cabin for up to two passengers, featuring its own butler.
Prices for The Residence start at $20,000 (Dh73,400) from Abu Dhabi to London and a feature a living room, double bed and shower room.
James Hogan, President and CEO of Etihad Airways, said the pricing structure is far more attractive than the up to $160,000 it costs to fly in a private jet from Abu Dhabi to London.
Etihad unveiled its new offering at a press conference in Abu Dhabi on Sunday where it flew in more than a hundred journalists [from all over the world]. The scale of the announcement highlights the Abu Dhabi government-backed airline’s faith in the product.
Hogan said that the airline does make money off its current first class service and that it operates at a 50 per cent load factor. He, however, pointed out that it is full in the peak period.
Etihad also rejigged its first class offering, which on the A380 will be called First Apartments. It features nine private suites with a reclining lounge and a separate full-length bed as well as other amenities including a mini-bar.
Superjumbo delivery
Hogan said large families and government dignitaries are likely to book the apartments.
Etihad is set to receive its first A380 by December, and Hogan said, the superjumbo will be placed on the “Kangaroo route” from Sydney and Melbourne to London via Abu Dhabi.
He added that the larger aircraft will give the airline bigger numbers into Australia, where he said, he is currently unable to increase frequency.
Etihad has ten A380s on order and will take a staggered delivery with the last one to be received in 2017.
Hogan declined to reveal the cost of fitting out the A380s with its new interior.
He further said Etihad is interested in deploying the A380 to India. He, however said he will assess market numbers before committing the aircraft to the Indian market.
787 plans
Etihad also unveiled its plans for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The first set of the 71 Dreamliners it has on order, will be delivered in October, and be put into service in December.
Etihad will intially deploy the Dreamliner 787s on routes between Abu Dhabi and Dusseldorf and later deploy the aircraft on services to Washington DC and Mumbai in January 2015.
New seat offering
The renamed business and economy classes — now called Business Studio and Economy Smart Seat — will also feature on the Airbus A380.
Etihad confirmed that passengers will be able to upgrade to “The Residence” by using their frequent flyer miles. Over the next four years, Etihad will retrofit its fleet with the new Business Studio and Economy Smart Seat offerings, Hogan said.
There will be 70 Business Studios on the upper deck of the A380 and 28 on the 787. Passengers will have their own suit with a 22-inch wide seat and a separate ottoman, which together provides an 80.5-inch long full flat bed. Business Studios will be arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration.
As for Economy Smart Seat, it is customised with a “fixed wing” headrest, which Etihad said provides greater comfort to passengers than its current offering. It will also have an an 11-inch personal screen.
The airline said it is also offering private prayer area for its Muslim guests on its A380s and 787s.
