Airbus Updates No.3795

 Etihad Aims For Second-Quarter Airbus A350 Introduction

Etihad Airways has revealed its plans to enter the Airbus A350 into service during the second quarter of 2022. The first A350 will debut in Q2 2022 as the airline phases the type into service. Etihad has five A350-1000s in its fleet that have yet to conduct any passenger flights.

Etihad's A350 to debut soon

Etihad Airways will finally introduce its Airbus A350s into service this year after more than two years of inactivity. In its business results for 2021, the airline announced that its first A350 will enter service in Q2 2022, while the other four will gradually follow.

The airline took delivery of four A350-1000s during the summer of 2019, with its fifth arriving a year later. The unused aircraft sat in storage in Bordeaux, France, for almost two years before Etihad finally flew them home.

As Etihad Airways Chief Executive Officer Tony Douglas revealed to Simple Flying in August, the aircraft will debut this year. However, the carrier has not shed any light on which routes the A350 will serve once it enters service.

The A350 in detail

Etihad's A350-1000 interior remained a closely-guarded secret until details leaked out during the Dubai Airshow 2021. While there has been no official announcement, photographs and videos from private tours eventually found their way onto social media, revealing Collins Aerospace Super Diamond seats in business class and no first class cabin.

The carrier initially placed an order for 50 A350s back in 2013 - this included 40 A350-900s and 22 A350-1000s. Etihad eventually dropped its entire -900 order along with two -1000s, leaving the airline with 20 A350-1000s in the order book.

Last month, Etihad expressed an interest in the A350F, the freighter variant of the A350. The carrier signed a letter of intent with Airbus at the Singapore Airshow for seven A350Fs.

Etihad cuts annual losses

Etihad significantly cut its annual losses to $476 million over 2021 after record-breaking losses of $1.70 billion over 2020. This is also an improvement on the airline's pre-pandemic operating losses of $802 million for 2019.

Cargo operations played a key role, with the airline seeing a 49% rise in cargo revenue to $1.73 billion. The airline's passenger capacity managed to reach 50% of its pre-pandemic levels in the final quarter of 2021.