Etihad Crystal Cargo, a division of Etihad Airways, is to launch a twice weekly service from its hub at Abu Dhabi airport to Baghdad.

The service, which commences on September 1, will operate every Tuesday and Thursday, with Etihad deploying one of its A300-600 freighters with a payload of 42 tonnes on the route.

Baghdad is Etihad’s first cargo-only destination in the Middle East region and this is the first time in its history that the airline has operated any services to Iraq.

“Trade and business ties between the UAE and Iraq continue to grow and we look forward to building a strong customer base in the country, which is widely considered one of the region’s fastest growing markets,” said Des Vertannes, executive vice president cargo.

With its fleet of two Airbus A300-600 aircraft and an MD11, Etihad Crystal Cargo has 14 cargo freighter destinations, including Frankfurt Haan, Mumbai, Lagos, Colombo and Milan.-TradeArabia News Service