Next month, Etihad Airways will begin operating flights to Guangzhou (CAN), bringing the number of weekly flights between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and China to four.
The twice-weekly passenger service between Abu Dhabi (AUH) and Guangzhou will launch on October 10 and initially utilize a two-class Boeing 777 aircraft, subject to regulatory permissions. As a result of the new route, Etihad will now provide service to three Chinese gateways.
“Our twice-weekly service will further address the huge demand for passenger travel between the UAE and China, as well as provide new cargo capacity, building on the formidable people and business ties between the two markets,” said Martin Drew, Etihad SVP of global sales and cargo.
In July 2020, Etihad restored service to Shanghai Pudong (PVG), and in June 2022, it began service to Beijing Capital (PEK). At the moment, each route is run once a week.
The airline also provided a nonstop service between Abu Dhabi and Chengdu (CTU) before the pandemic, however, regular service has been halted since February 2020.
On Mondays and Fridays at 11 p.m., Etihad will fly to Guangzhou; those planes will land in Canada at 10.25 a.m. the following day. The return trip departs Abu Dhabi at 6.40 p.m. on Wednesdays and Sundays and arrives at 10.40 p.m. the same day.
There are three carriers that offer nonstop service between the UAE and Guangzhou, according to the information given by OAG Schedules Analyser for the week beginning September 12.
Two times per week on Emirates and once per week on China Southern Airlines, respectively, flights are available from Dubai (DXB), and Nigeria’s Air Peace connects Sharjah (SHJ) and Guangzhou once per week as part of a Lagos (LOS)-Sharjah-Guangzhou route.
According to data from Sabre Market Intelligence, there were 180,368 two-way passengers traveling between the UAE and Guangzhou in 2019, an increase of 7.4% over the previous year. Passenger volume decreased to 45,800 in 2020 and 42,300 in 2021, however, China’s rigorous COVID-19 travel regulations significantly reduced nonstop capacity.
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