Etihad takes to the F1 fast lane
In the build-up to the inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in 2009, national carrier Etihad Airways has re-painted one of its aircraft in the livery of a Formula 1 racing car. In a seven-figure, three-year sponsorship deal, the airline will be the title sponsor of the event until 2011 Etihad heads for China
Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, will fly to China for the first time from March 30 with the launch of a four times a week service between Abu Dhabi and Beijing. It will be the carrier's eighth destination in the Asia/Pacific region, which already includes services to Brisbane, Sydney, Manila, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Bangkok. Etihad's flights to Beijing will operate on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday with a 23.45 departure, arriving in the Chinese capital at 11.30 the following day. The return service leaves on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 19.10, with arrival scheduled at 00.20 the next day. Flights will be operated by Airbus A330-200s, configured to carry 22 passengers in Business Class and 240 in Economy, and with the capability of carrying up to 11 tonnes of cargo with a full passenger load. ‘FLY greener’ initiative
Cathay Pacific and Dragonair have become the first airlines in Asia to launch a carbon offset scheme. Their 'FLY greener' initiative is also the first of its type to be directly managed by an airline to offer passengers the option of using cash or frequent flyer miles – in this case, Asia Miles – to pay for their offsets on a voluntary basis. It is an extension of an in-house programme that offsets the carbon emissions associated with staff travelling on business for either airline. Within the space of one year, the in-house programme has already raised nearly HK$1 million that will be used to buy offsets. To highlight their commitment to the new offset scheme, both Cathay Pacific and Dragonair will match dollar for dollar the contributions of their passengers for the first three months of the programme. To offset their travel, passengers can access the the ‘FLY greener’ section on the websites of either airline and use the online calculator to work out how much it will cost to compensate for their journey, based on the distance of their flight and the class of travel. Passengers can buy as many offsets as they like, including for previous journeys on either airline. In all cases, the voluntary payment represents only a fraction of the ticket price.
Ascending stars
Air China and Shanghai Airlines are the latest members of the Star Alliance airline network. With the addition of the two Chinese airlines, the alliance now has 19 member carriers operating a total of 17,000 daily flights to 897 destinations in 160 countries. BA replaces GB routes British Airways is this spring launching flights from London Heathrow to Malaga, and from London Gatwick to Alicante, Faro, Gibraltar, Ibiza, Malaga, Palma and Tunis. They replace similar services currently operated by its franchise GB Airways, which was acquired by easyJet towards the end of last year. To accommodate the new services, BA is suspending flights from Gatwick to Aberdeen, Nice, Prague, Reykjavik and Split. Top on-time performer Bmi regional was Britain’s most punctual airline during the first nine months of 2007, according to the latest statistics published by the UK Civil Aviation Authority. Ninety-one per cent of the airline's flights were on time (within 15 minutes of departure) for the period between January and September, with delays averaging just six minutes. Bmi regional was in pole position at all the surveyed UK airports from which it operates. JAL’s new premium perks Japan Airlines' new Premium Economy cabin, launched on the Tokyo-London route in December, is to be added to Frankfurt flights from February 3. Paris services will benefit later in the year, along with other European and US destinations.
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