Etihad Airways has introduced the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner on its daily service from Abu Dhabi, UAE, to Casablanca, Morocco’s largest city and commercial hub.

On arrival in Casablanca, the aircraft was greeted with a traditional water cannon salute.

Etihad Airways also chose to celebrate the occasion and its commitment to the Moroccan travel market with a special dinner held in Casablanca. Guests included diplomats, dignitaries, media representatives, Moroccan corporate partners, travel trade, and senior members of Etihad Airways’ management team.

Mohammad Al Bulooki, executive vice president commercial, Etihad Airways, said: “The introduction of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner on the Abu Dhabi to Casablanca route demonstrates our clear commitment to the very important Moroccan market.

“Travellers between the two cities will now be able to experience the unparalleled levels of comfort, entertainment and inflight connectivity of this next-generation aircraft, and to seamlessly connect through the Abu Dhabi hub to our network across the Gulf, Asia and Australia.

“More importantly, we are here to celebrate the special relationship between the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Morocco – a relationship which is deep-rooted in language, shared values, tourism and trade.”

Etihad Airways’ three-class version of the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner features eight private First Suites, 28 Business Studios and 199 Economy Smart Seats.

The introduction of the aircraft has seen a scheduling change which optimises timings for customers travelling to and from Casablanca. Etihad Airways maintains a morning arrival into Casablanca, the only early service from the UAE, and now operates a revised mid-morning return flight that provides an earlier, more convenient evening arrival time in Abu Dhabi, also improving connectivity to a wider network of destinations including Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Tokyo.

To meet summer peak travel demand, Etihad Airways has also added a third weekly service to the Moroccan capital, Rabat. The extra flight will operate on Saturdays until May 12, and also from June 30 to September 29.

Etihad Airways operates a codeshare partnership with Royal Air Maroc (RAM), providing its customers with onward connections onto the Moroccan flag carrier’s services from Casablanca to Agadir, Marrakech and Tangier, and pending approvals, to the West African cities of Abidjan, Conakry and Dakar. Royal Air Maroc codeshares on Etihad Airways operated flights to and from Abu Dhabi to Casablanca and Rabat. - TradeArabia News Service