Etihad Regional marked the start of a twice-weekly service linking Geneva in Switzerland, and Toulouse in southwestern France.

Flight F7464 touched down at Toulouse-Blagnac airport yesterday at 4:40pm local time and the newly branded 50-seat Saab 2000 aircraft was greeted by a traditional water cannon salute, said a statement.

This is Etihad Regional’s first year-round route to France from its Swiss base. The airline already operates to Biarritz and Calvi during the summer season and will commence year-round operations to Bordeaux, Lyon and Marseille between May and June.

From May, Etihad Regional plans to operate a larger 68-seat ATR 72-500 aircraft on the Geneva-Toulouse route.  From June, the airline will also increase the Geneva-Toulouse services to three flights per week.

The new Geneva-Toulouse flights are timed to offer guests seamless connections through Geneva to Abu Dhabi and to cities across the globe, the statement said.

Etihad Regional is the new European brand operated by Swiss-based regional carrier, Darwin Airline, founded in 2003. Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways has a key stake in the airline. - TradeArabia News Service