Abu Dhabi: Etihad Airways is not interested in ordering any more Airbus A380s, while the launch of its first Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner into service has been delayed, said the airline’s James Hogan, president and chief executive, on Thursday.
“Ten A380s is the number we need. We have no discussions to acquire anymore,” he said at a press event in Abu Dhabi unveiling the airline’s first A380 and Dreamliner.
The Dreamliner has been delayed by “one to two weeks” due to “certification issues,” Hogan said.
The Dreamliner will now enter into service on the Abu Dhabi-Frankfurt route on February 1. Earlier this year, Etihad said it expected the Dreamliner to enter into service in December.
“I would rather iron out the issues that we have so that the following aircraft are on track,” Hogan said.
He added that the issues were “minor”, however, declining to specifically comment as to whether Etihad will seek compensation for the delay.
“What’s important to me is that we deliver the product,” he said.
Etihad has 71 Dreamliners on order, 41 787-9s and 30 787-10s.
Boeing’s Dreamliner programme has been marred by a series of in-service incidents since the first flight in December 2009; however, Etihad appears to have no concerns over the aircraft’s history of incidents.
“We are very confident the issues they’ve had have been resolved,” Hogan said.
Airbus A380, meanwhile, will enter into service on time, on December 27. Etihad has placed its first of the ten A380s on one of its three daily Abu Dhabi-London services. “Eventually, Heathrow will be an all-A380 operation,” Hogan said, adding that other routes are still being identified for the superjumbo. “[The A380] will be operating flagship routes where the airports are also slot constrained,” he said.
Etihad will receive the ten A380s over the next two-and-a-half years.
The airline has already announced the A380 will eventually be used on flights from Abu Dhabi to New York, Paris and Sydney.
Etihad’s A380 features an all new premium cabin dubbed “The Residence”, a three-room suite that includes a double bed and butler service. The Residence costs $20,000 on the Abu Dhabi-London route.
Hogan said a “travel agent from America” was the first “client” on The Residence. He also said he had received at least one inquiry from a potential passenger looking to celebrate his 20th wedding anniversary.
“What we’re actually seeing is … a whole range of people wanting to take advantage of this,” Hogan added.
While Etihad is looking to rewrite the rule book on travel with its new premium class, other carriers are taking a step back. Emirates recently confirmed it will no longer just fly three-class A380s, whereby from late 2015 it will also fly two-class superjumbos.
Hogan ruled out a similar move by Etihad.
“The spec you see on-board will be the same across all day,” he said.
Etihad flew in around 200 journalists to attend Thursday’s unveiling, 50 more than it flew in for a press event earlier this year announcing the interiors of the two aircraft. The airline used the global media audience to unveil its new cabin crew uniform, designed by Italy’s Ettore Bilotta.
