Etihad Airways is expanding its reach in North America with a new non-stop service between Abu Dhabi and Boston beginning on March 31, 2024.
Tickets are already on sale for the new four-times-a-week service, with flights operating on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays. Etihad Airways will use its two-class Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner on the route with 28 ‘Business Studio’ seats and 262 Economy seats.
The outbound 6,670-mile flight from Abu Dhabi is blocked at 13 hours and 45 minutes and is being sold as EY147, while the return flight is blocked at just 12 hours and 5 minutes and is being sold as EY148.
Boston will become Etihad’s fourth destination in the United States alongside Chicago, New York and Washington DC. Etihad previously flew non-stop to Dallas, but the carrier ditched the service in 2018, blaming American Airlines for ending its codeshare agreement on the route.
Etihad said its partnership with JetBlue would offer passengers arriving in Boston convenient onward connections across the United States.
Explaining the decision to start flights to Boston, a spokesperson for the airline said that the city was a popular choice for Emirati students looking to study abroad, while Boston’s status as a global healthcare hub was also a strong draw.
“We are delighted to introduce flights to Boston, which opens up Abu Dhabi to visitors from the American Northeast and across the United States,” commented Antonoaldo Neves, Etihad’s CEO.
“We eagerly await welcoming guests to our extraordinary home as well as offering them access to our growing global network.”
Neves took over the reins at Etihad in late 2022 after the shock departure of his predecessor Tony Douglas who left the Abu Dhabi-based airline to start Riyadh Air in neighbouring Saudi Arabia.
Douglas had overseen a period of cost-cutting at Etihad Airways as it sought to claw back huge losses from a failed equity investment scheme. At one point, it looked as if Etihad was set to become a regional boutique airline, but Neves is now in charge of a renewed expansion phase for the carrier.
