Turkish Airlines and Etihad announce codeshare

Originally published on businesstraveller.com 04/07/2009 - Filed under: News »

Print
Send

Turkish Airlines and Etihad Airways have signed a codeshare agreement on the Istanbul-Abu Dhabi route, following the launch of Etihad’s four-times weekly service to the Turkish city last month.

From July 6, Etihad will place its two-letter “EY” code on Turkish Airlines’ flights between Istanbul and Abu Dhabi, while Turkish Airlines will place its two-letter “TK” code on Etihad Airways’ flights between the two cities.

Temel Kotil, Turkish Airlines’ chief executive, said: “This is a testament to the growing relationship between Turkish Airlines and Etihad Airways. We will make every effort to maximize the opportunities offered by our combined network… customers are the ultimate winners, as they benefit from the extensive networks of both airlines linking both hubs, Istanbul and Abu Dhabi, and beyond.”

Etihad Airways’ chief executive James Hogan said: “Etihad Airways’ new service from Abu Dhabi to Istanbul has been extremely popular since its launch and we are delighted to sign this codeshare with Turkish Airlines which will support the growing demand for flights between these two cities and beyond. This latest codeshare agreement will also build business links between Turkey and the UAE.”

Passengers from Istanbul will be able to connect on to Etihad’s network of connections to destinations such as Bangkok, Johannesburg and Beijing, as well as cities across the Middle East.

Passengers from Abu Dhabi will also be able to connect on Turkish Airlines’ network to 116 international destinations including routes within Turkey, and to Europe and the Americas.

In other news, Turkish Airlines recently announced plans to expand its wide-body fleet with five new B777-300ERs (see online news May 9).

The London Heathrow-Istanbul route is currently being operated by a B777 on lease from Jet Airways. For a review of the product from the May issue of Business Traveller click here.

For more information visit thy.com, etihadairways.com

Report by Sara Turner