Etihad has secured approval from US regulators to codeshare on Aer Lingus transatlantic flights from Dublin.
The Abu Dhabi-based carrier, which owns 3 per cent of Aer Lingus, can now put its EY flight code on the Irish airlines flights to Boston, Chicago and New York.
Eithad said that the major benefit of the codeshare would be passengers’ ability to clear US customs and immigration in Dublin so they effectively arrive in the US as domestic passengers.
Kevin Knight, Etihad’s chief strategy and planning officer, said: “Our strategic partnership with Aer Lingus continues to flourish and, as a result of US regulatory approval for transatlantic services, air travellers in the UAE and beyond now have greater access to the American market via Dublin.”
As part of the codeshare, Aer Lingus has also placed its EI code on Etihad flights between Abu Dhabi and Dublin, Bahrain, Kuala Lumpur, London, Manchester, Melbourne, Muscat and Sydney.
The airlines said in a statement that they will “continue to discuss additional commercial and cost opportunities”.
Meanwhile Etihad has announced that its passenger revenue reached $900 million in the first three months of the year – up by 19 per cent on the same period in 2012. Passenger numbers also rose by 18 per cent to 2.8 million for the same quarter.
Etihad CEO James Hogan said: “Our quarter one 2013 results have again outstripped global trends, with our strongest ever first quarter results for passenger revenue.
“This performance demonstrates that Etihad Airways’ strategy of organic growth, wide-ranging partnerships, and strategic equity investments is delivering for us and our partners.”
aerlingus.com
etihad.com