UAE-based Etihad Airways and airberlin celebrated the launch of the German carrier’s new service from Stuttgart to Abu Dhabi, with the inaugural flight receiving a traditional water canon salute on arrival at Abu Dhabi International Airport.

The daily service is airberlin’s first long-haul route from Stuttgart, capital of Germany’s Baden-Württemberg state, and also serves as the first direct connection between the thriving economic city and UAE capital Abu Dhabi.

The new service is operated using a two-class Airbus A320 aircraft, offering a total of 12 Business Class seats and 132 Economy Class seats.

Etihad Airways has placed its ‘EY’ code on the flights as part of a codeshare agreement with airberlin, and connects the service with a range of business and leisure destinations across its network in the GCC region, Indian Subcontinent, South East Asia and Australia.

Together, airberlin and Etihad Airways now operate 63 flights per week from Germany to Abu Dhabi, flying twice daily from Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt and Munich, and daily from Stuttgart.

Wolfgang Prock-Schauer, chief executive officer of airberlin, said: “The new flights from Stuttgart to Abu Dhabi mark an important milestone for airberlin. The Stuttgart area is one of Germany’s most economically important regions and we see great potential for our service to Abu Dhabi.” – TradeArabia News Service