Etihad Airways, a national airline of the United Arab Emirates, witnessed record-breaking success last year thanks to achievement of the highest ever passenger and cargo volumes in 2013.
The airline disclosed in a press release Wednesday that nearly12 million people flew with Etihad Airways last year, marking a significant increase of nearly 16 per cent in comparison to 2012's figure of 10.3 million.
It mentioned that Bangkok was once again the airline's busiest route, with a total of 742,759 passengers flying to Thailand's capital city in 2013, a year-on-year increase of seven per cent.
The second busiest route was Manila with 547,068 passengers, followed by London (544,564 passengers), Jeddah (373,651 passengers) and Paris (338,969 passengers).
The release also mentioned that Etihad Airways carried 73 per cent of the more than 16.4 million passengers who travelled through Abu Dhabi airport in 2013. With the addition of the airline's equity alliance partners that operate flights to Abu Dhabi, the combined total rises to 79 per cent of passenger traffic at Abu Dhabi airport.
President and Chief Executive Officer of Etihad Airways James Hogan said: "Our record-breaking numbers in 2013 reflect the continued success of our strategic master plan, which focuses on three fundamental pillars; organic network growth, the forging of code share partnerships, and minority equity investments in other airlines."
Last year, Etihad Airways took delivery of eight Airbus aircraft (four A320s, one A321, two A330-200s and one A330 freighter), eight Boeing aircraft (six 777-300ERs and two 777 freighters), and added further leased capacity which included the airline's inaugural 747-8 freighter. Its fleet now comprises 89 aircraft, with an average age of only 5.2 years.
Mr Hogan added: "This has been another game-changing year and once again, the customer was placed at the heart of everything we did. Our service enhancements in 2013, from the launch of our Flying Nanny service to the continued rollout of Wi-Fi internet and live television across our fleet, highlight a commitment to delivering best-in-class products and services."
