Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, this week celebrates its fifth anniversary of non-stop services between Abu Dhabi and Casablanca with the announcement that it will increase capacity on the route by adding a fifth weekly flight.The airline commenced its operation to the commercial capital of Morocco in June 2006, and since then has carried more than 300,000 travellers and nearly 6.5 million tons of cargo on the route.

James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ Chief Executive Officer, said: “Our Casablanca operation has exceeded our expectations over the past five years, and we are pleased to be able to build on this success with an additional service. We remain committed to building sustainable ties in the North African region, and deepening the strong relationship between Morocco and the United Arab Emirates.”

Etihad currently operates a three-cabin Airbus A330-200 aircraft between Abu Dhabi and Casablanca, configured to carry 200 passengers  10 in Diamond first class, 26 in Pearl business, and 164 in Coral economy.In addition to carrying passengers between Abu Dhabi and Casablanca, Etihad offers seamless connections to many popular onward GCC destinations including Jeddah, a choice of Asian destinations such as Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Manila, the Indian Subcontinent, Sydney in Australia and Johannesburg in South Africa.

Moulay Hicham El Kadiri Boutchich, Etihad’s Country Manager for Morocco, said: “Etihad has enjoyed consistently high load factors across all cabins since the launch of services between Casablanca and Abu Dhabi in 2006 and we are very proud of that success. We will continue to look at ways to make our service more accessible for all of our customers business and leisure.

“The additional weekly flight will open new horizons for our commercial activities in Morocco and will offer our customers more flexibility in their travel to Abu Dhabi and onto the airline worldwide network.Etihad extended its codeshare agreement with Royal Air Maroc in September 2010, allowing Etihad passengers to travel from Casablanca to Agadir, Laayoune, Fez and Marrakech in Morocco, and Nouakchott in Mauritania and Dakar in Senegal.

Etihad Airways key dates during five years of services to Morocco:2 June 2006  inaugural Abu Dhabi-Casablanca service commenced with three frequencies per week;July 2006  launch of a fourth weekly Abu Dhabi-Casablanca flight;September 2009 – opening of a new Etihad Airways office in Casablanca;September 2010 – expansion of codeshare agreement with Royal Air Maroc, allowing both companies to expand their offerings to Morocco, the Gulf and West Africa;