Mideast airline Etihad offers luxury suites

Etihad Airways, the national airline from the Uae, has unveiled an extravagance class upper-deck accommodation to make travelers feel they are in their own home on its Airbus A380.

Dubbed as “The Residence by Etihad, probably the most luxurious living space in the air”, is among the cool product and repair offerings on its Airbus A380 and Boeing B787 Dreamliner aircraft. The Residence will be the breath-taking and brand-new forward upper-deck cabin on the A380.

The special luxury package is anticipated to cost three to four times as much as a normal first-class ticket – around 12,500 for any one-way ticket from Abu Dhabi to London.

The carrier announced the package as part of a broader rollout of new “cabin” deals for its long-haul jets, which permit passengers to purchase rooms rather than seats on its flights. It’s the latest in a number of offers targeted at securing its reputation at the very top end from the market.

James Hogan, chief executive of Etihad, said he believed there is demand for such luxury deals. “This is really a top-end market. There’s demand here,” he said at the launch event in Abu Dhabi.

“Maybe European airlines don’t make money on first [class] but we do, and we wouldn’t have devised this product when we didn’t believe we could create a return.”

Etihad is among three rapidly expanding, government-backed carriers based in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain (others are Emirates and Gulf Air). Since it began operating in 2003, Etihad has built a number of 96 planes, also it carried 11.5 million passengers last year.

The additional features will be offered on its 10 new double-deck Airbus 380 aircraft, that will enter service in December. Top of the decks will even contain business studios.

Etihad already offers perks including private chefs and in-flight nannies.