Etihad Flight EY131 touched down at Washington's Dulles International Airportyesterday marking the Abu Dhabi carrier's latest stage of growth.
The much-trumpeted flight marked the start of yet another milestone in ambitious expansion plans for the UAE carrier as it began non-stop daily 15-hour Airbus A340-500 flights between Abu Dhabi and Washington, creating the first direct air link between the two capitals.
Regular new routes to Amsterdam and São Paolo are also due to start over the next couple of months as the airline seeks to further expand its reach.
Etihad Airways has also had preliminary talks with Glasgow and Edinburgh airports about opening up direct routes from Abu Dhabi to Scotland as part of ambitious plans that include growing Abu Dhabi International Airport from its current 12.5 million annual capacity to 30 million over the next four years. Etihad's president and chief executive James Hogan said the airline had committed 3,360 seats per week to the new Washington route, which were selling well to business passengers.
"Government and corporate customers in both markets have given us strong indication that the Abu Dhabi - Washington route can support a daily service from day one. Already our forward bookings on the route are very encouraging in both directions."
A US$6.8 million (Dh24.9m) Etihad premium lounge is also set to open this week in Terminal A at Dulles airport as part of launch functions, attended by the UAE ambassador to the United States Yousef Al Otaiba, the US ambassador to the UAE Michael Corbin and the president of the US-UAE Business Council Danny Sebright.
Washington is the fourth North American destination for Etihad after New York, Chicago and Toronto as the airline seeks to capitalise on the lucrative transatlantic passenger routes.
Etihad said it had carried a total of almost two million passengers between Abu Dhabi and North America, achieving 12.6 per cent growth in passenger numbers last year.
lbarnard@thenational.ae
Champions parade (UAE timings)
7pm Gates open
8pm Deansgate stage showing starts
9pm Parade starts at Manchester Cathedral
9.45pm Parade ends at Peter Street
10pm City players on stage
11pm event ends
Wenger's Arsenal reign in numbers
1,228 - games at the helm, ahead of Sunday's Premier League fixture against West Ham United.
704 - wins to date as Arsenal manager.
3 - Premier League title wins, the last during an unbeaten Invincibles campaign of 2003/04.
1,549 - goals scored in Premier League matches by Wenger's teams.
10 - major trophies won.
473 - Premier League victories.
7 - FA Cup triumphs, with three of those having come the last four seasons.
151 - Premier League losses.
21 - full seasons in charge.
49 - games unbeaten in the Premier League from May 2003 to October 2004.
West Indies v India - Third ODI
India 251-4 (50 overs)
Dhoni (78*), Rahane (72), Jadhav (40)
Cummins (2-56), Bishoo (1-38)
West Indies 158 (38.1 overs)
Mohammed (40), Powell (30), Hope (24)
Ashwin (3-28), Yadav (3-41), Pandya (2-32)
India won by 93 runs
The Ashes
Results
First Test, Brisbane: Australia won by 10 wickets
Second Test, Adelaide: Australia won by 120 runs
Third Test, Perth: Australia won by an innings and 41 runs
Fourth Test: Melbourne: Drawn
Fifth Test: Australia won by an innings and 123 runs
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
Employment lawyer Meriel Schindler of Withers Worldwide shares her tips on achieving equal pay
Do your homework
Make sure that you are being offered a fair salary. There is lots of industry data available, and you can always talk to people who have come out of the organisation. Where I see people coming a cropper is where they haven’t done their homework.
Don’t be afraid to negotiate
It’s quite standard to negotiate if you think an offer is on the low side. The job is unlikely to be withdrawn if you ask for money, and if that did happen I’d question whether you want to work for an employer who is so hypersensitive.
Know your worth
Women tend to be a bit more reticent to talk about their achievements. In my experience they need to have more confidence in their own abilities – men will big up what they’ve done to get a pay rise, and to compete women need to turn up the volume.
Work together
If you suspect men in your organisation are being paid more, look your boss in the eye and say, “I want you to assure me that I’m paid equivalent to my peers”. If you’re not getting a straight answer, talk to your peer group and consider taking direct action to fix inequality.
