Etihad Airways has said it will launch flights to Moscow from Abu Dhabi on December 1, followed by flights to the Kazakhstan capital, Almaty, commencing the next day.

To mark the start of the historic EY69 flights, Etihad has unveiled great value introductory fares, which are now on sale, with return economy flights to Moscow starting from Dh690 ($188) and return business class flights starting from Dh6900.

The five flights a week Moscow and four flights a week Almaty services are set to follow on from the highly successful launch of Etihad flights to the Belarus capital Minsk which started on August 5, 2008.

James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ chief executive, said: ’Russia represents a key emerging market for Etihad. The country’s recent economic development is creating an increasingly affluent population with a huge appetite to access Abu Dhabi’s property market and growing leisure attractions.

’In addition, Abu Dhabi provides an ideal launch pad for Russian-based air travellers keen to access the growing number of international destinations now served by Etihad Airways.’

Spanning no less than 10 time zones, Russia is the largest country in the world in terms of surface area.

Russia’s economic power lies in its huge natural resources, particularly oil and gas which has brought rapid economic growth to the country.

Moscow is the country’s political, economic, financial, educational and transportation centre.

The city is a major economic centre and is home to the largest number of billionaires in the world. Many multi-national corporations have branches and offices in the city.

The Russian capital will be Etihad’s eleventh destination in its flight network in the Europe region which already includes services to Brussels, Dublin, Frankfurt, Geneva, London, Manchester, Milan, Minsk, Munich and Paris.

Flight EY069 will depart Abu Dhabi on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays at 9.40am and arrive at Moscow’s Domodedovo international airport at 2.05pm the same day.

Return flight EY068 will depart Moscow on the same days at 2.55pm, arriving in Abu Dhabi at 9.05pm.

Etihad will operate to Moscow on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays a two-class Airbus A319 configured to carry 104 passengers with 20 seats in business class and 84 in economy class.

On Thursdays, the service will be operated by an Airbus A320 configured to carry 140 passengers with 20 seats in business and 120 in economy. - TradeArabia News service