Etihad Airways fleet expansion: First Airbus A321LR to enter service Aug 1 on Abu Dhabi-Phuket route; Narrowbody jet features First Suites, wider reach – Times of India

Etihad Airways on Friday introduced the supply of its first Airbus A321LR plane from a complete order of 30 jets, marking a big step within the airline’s growth technique. The plane will enter industrial service on August 1, 2025, with its inaugural route connecting Abu Dhabi to Phuket.Following its debut, the A321LR will regularly be deployed on a number of worldwide routes together with Kolkata, Algiers, Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Copenhagen, Düsseldorf, Krabi, Krakow, Medan, Milan, Paris, Phnom Penh, Tunis, and Zurich, in accordance to an ET report.“This supply helps Etihad’s ambition of carrying 38 million passengers yearly by 2030,” the airline mentioned in an announcement. 9 extra A321LR plane are anticipated to be delivered by means of the rest of 2025.The newly inducted plane additionally marks a primary for the airline—it’s Etihad’s first-ever narrowbody plane fitted with First Suites. The plane features a 14-seat Enterprise Class cabin and a 144-seat Financial system Class part. It additionally provides enhanced passenger consolation with enlarged overhead bins, offering extra baggage house than standard narrowbody jets.Commenting on the supply, Benoît de Saint-Exupéry, Govt Vice President at Airbus, mentioned: “This plane units a brand new commonplace for consolation within the single-aisle class and paves the best way for elevated connectivity as Etihad expands its operations from its Abu Dhabi hub.”