Air Berlin will introduce a second daily flight between Berlin and Abu Dhabi from October, building on its agreement with codeshare partner Etihad Airways.
The two airlines will also expand their codeshare agreement from mid-February, with Airberlin guests able to book flights to six destinations served by Etihad Airways: New Delhi, Mumbai, Cochin, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore.
The route, which has operated since January 2012, provides the only direct connection between Germany’s capital city and the UAE.
It is operated using an Airbus A330-200 aircraft with 19 full flat business class seats and 279 economy seats.
As a result of the increased frequency Airberlin and Etihad Airways will operate a total of 56 flights per week between Germany and the UAE, including double-daily connections from Berlin, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt and Munich.
Etihad Airways’s CEO and president, James Hogan, said: “The partnership between Etihad Airways and Airberlin continues to move from strength to strength, with 560,000 passengers flying across our two networks in 2013, a 74% increase on the previous year.”