Etihad scores hat trick at World Travel Awards
Etihad scooped top honours at the World Travel Awards [WTA], picking up a hat trick of successes including the top accolades for the Middle East’s leading airline, leading first class and leading travel website.
Votes for the WTA ceremony, which took place at “Atlantis the Palm†in Dubai, were made by nearly 170,000 travel industry professionals from around the world, including more than 110,000 travel agents.
The success brings the total number of World Travel Awards that Etihad has won to 12, and provides the airline with more reasons to celebrate as it flies towards its fifth anniversary on 5 November 2008.
James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ chief executive, said, “Etihad continues to experience tremendous growth and it is particularly enjoyable to cap such an incredible year with these three prestigious World Travel Awards.”
“The Middle East is an extremely competitive region in the global air travel industry and to win the leading airline, first class and website awards is great recognition for what Etihad has achieved in less than five years.â€
Etihad Airways set new records with its passenger figures for the first nine months of 2008 with a 35 per cent increase on the same period last year while seat factors in the same period averaged 75 per cent, representing a year-on-year increase of seven percentage points.
Boosted by its busiest ever summer, Etihad Airways is set to exceed its target of six million passengers by the end of an impressive year, which will also see its global network grow to a half century of destinations and its aircraft fleet grow to 42 aircraft.
Upon receiving the leading first class award at the WTA, Etihad was praised by the judges for several new initiatives including the airline’s introduction of new food and beverage managers onto all of the airline’s long-haul routes, an industry first.
Other highlights recognised by the voters included Etihad’s new premium lounges and concierge service at Abu Dhabi airport as well as free limousine services which are now widely available across the network for first and business class customers.
Etihad has also made significant developments to its award-winning global website, www.etihadairways.com, which is available in Arabic, English, French, German and Chinese.
Another key development introduced recently by the airline is a new online booking tool that shows variations in prices for outbound and inbound travel on different days. The new flexible pricing tool, based around a simple calendar system, gives travellers greater control of when they choose to fly and how much they choose to pay.
The self-service philosophy has been boosted further as Etihad’s customers can create their own personal page, selecting from a menu of applications that include flight status checker, Etihad Guest programme news, web check in and special offers.
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