I recently wrote about how Etihad Airways is in the process of taking delivery of new Boeing 787-9s, which feature fresh interiors. The airline has now updated its schedule to reflect the first routes that are expected to get these new aircraft.
In this post:
Basics of Etihad’s new Boeing 787-9s
Etihad has been nicely improving its product in recent years, and as the latest example of that, the airline is introducing a new passenger experience on newly delivered Boeing 787-9s. In the coming weeks, the airline should be putting three of these aircraft into service.
What makes them special?
- These planes will have the Collins Aerospace Elements seat in business class, which is a reverse herringbone seat with a door; this seat debuted on Starlux’s A350-900s
- These planes feature Viasat Wi-Fi, so you can expect faster internet than ever before on Etihad
- These planes feature greatly improved tech, including things like bluetooth audio, and much more
While Etihad’s Airbus A350-1000s offer a phenomenal passenger experience, these Boeing 787-9s should be even better.
Routes for Etihad’s new Boeing 787-9s
While I haven’t seen an official announcement, Etihad has updated its seat maps to reflect which flights will feature the carrier’s new cabins. Let me emphasize that this remains subject to change, so even if you book a flight showing the correct seat map, it’s still possible there will be a schedule change.
For context, below is what the seat map looks like for the reconfigured 787-9s. As you can tell, the configuration is the same in every row, unlike Etihad’s “classic” 787s, which have a staggered configuration.
With that in mind, the following routes are currently expected to get the new cabins on select frequencies:
- Starting March 2, 2024, Etihad has scheduled its new 787-9s to fly between Abu Dhabi (AUH) and Mumbai (BOM) on the EY205/206 frequencies on select days
- Starting March 4, 2024, Etihad has scheduled its new 787-9s to fly between Abu Dhabi (AUH) and Munich (MUC) on the EY5/6 frequencies on select days
- Starting March 11, 2024, Etihad has scheduled its new 787-9s to fly between Abu Dhabi (AUH) and New York (JFK) on the EY100/101 frequencies on select days; this service stops on April 21, and is replaced with the Washington flight
- Starting April 22, 2024, Etihad has scheduled its new 787-9s to fly between Abu Dhabi (AUH) and Washington (IAD) on the EY130/131 frequencies on select days
It’s awesome to see that Etihad has plans to offer its new product on a route to the United States. The date for that service switchover is no coincidence, as April 22 will be a big day for the carrier’s service to North America:
- As of April 22, Etihad will start flying the A380 on one of the two daily frequencies to New York
- As of April 22, Etihad will start flying the 787-9 with first class on one of the two daily frequencies to New York, replacing a 787-9 without first class; this aircraft is being removed from the Washington route
- As of April 22, Etihad will replace the 787-9 with first class on the Washington route with the 787-9 with the new cabins
So while first class was initially a loss for flyers in Washington, everyone not in first class can look forward to a superior experience, which is great.
Bottom line
Etihad will shortly be flying newly delivered Boeing 787-9s, featuring new interiors. These aircraft will be entering service in the coming weeks, initially flying to Mumbai, Munich, New York, and Washington. If you’re thinking of booking a trip on Etihad, definitely consider booking one of these flights, though be aware of the possibility of an aircraft swap.
What do you make of Etihad’s initial routes for the new Boeing 787-9s?
I've heard that Etihad will also open a new direct route from Abu Dhabi (AUH) to Denpasar (DPS) around April this year also using the 787's but I don't remember which variant.
they were supposed to. They have withdrawn the service and it will no longer operate.
Sad to lose a sweet ride home from Abu Dhabi to IAD. I really enjoyed the DreamLiner in 2K
It’s Why I flew last month last minute and again on planned trip next month.
Cool to get new amenities
"Starting March 4, 2024, Etihad has scheduled its new 787-9s to fly between Abu Dhabi (AUH) and Munich (MUC) on the EY5/6 frequencies on select days"
I was actually booked on EY 4 and 5 from/to MUC in April/May and today got a notification about a schedule change - with the only change being the flight numbers changing to EY 128 and EY 125 (with otherwise identical schedule).
According to the seat map, EY...
"Starting March 4, 2024, Etihad has scheduled its new 787-9s to fly between Abu Dhabi (AUH) and Munich (MUC) on the EY5/6 frequencies on select days"
I was actually booked on EY 4 and 5 from/to MUC in April/May and today got a notification about a schedule change - with the only change being the flight numbers changing to EY 128 and EY 125 (with otherwise identical schedule).
According to the seat map, EY 125 (the former EY 5) should be the one getting the new cabin, matching your information just with an updated number.
Now all we need is just to find partner award space
Keep checking with American. Last month I got award space AUH LHR FRA ON THE A380 by calling AA. EY showed no Guest Award, but AA showed availability but ticketing online wouldn’t work. I call and CSR Yolanda found and ticketed my Shower in the Sky. All for 62,500 AA miles
@Ben - What happened to my comment? Are negative experiences not permitted?
This is fantastic news for DC. That's a trade off I can live with and really shows EY thinking through the process of keeping IAD flyers happy in spite of losing the F cabin. Looking forward to its arrival!
Agreed, great news for IAD (and JFK).
@Ben - Maybe do a comparison of products between the 787-9/787-10/A380 hard products?
Rather a shame about Washington losing first class. My wife and I flew it a few days ago and while the ground experience pretty much sucked the flight itself was superb in first class.
I'm flying IAD-AUH in First Class in a few weeks. Can you explain the ground experience? What about it sucked? Which lounge did they have passengers use? i know the Etihad lounge is no longer there, but what about it sucked?
We flew the other way so you may be okay. We had arrived on Qatar and had about seven hours to kill. Unfortunately we had to gather and recheck luggage. We hit some problems at security because they didn’t want my wife to carry on a few hundred dollars worth of silver wire (my wife does silversmithing) and my wife didn’t want it to vanish from our checked bags so she REALLY wanted to carry...
We flew the other way so you may be okay. We had arrived on Qatar and had about seven hours to kill. Unfortunately we had to gather and recheck luggage. We hit some problems at security because they didn’t want my wife to carry on a few hundred dollars worth of silver wire (my wife does silversmithing) and my wife didn’t want it to vanish from our checked bags so she REALLY wanted to carry it on. We hadn’t hit this problem in BKK or DOH so it just felt like they were just hassling us for no good reason. Finally we gave in.
After that we proceeded to the business/first class lounge, which was very easy to find. We were beat and desperately needed a nap but the first class area - in their brand new custom terminal - doesn’t have nap rooms and despite all sections of the lounge being pretty much deserted, every one of the eight rooms was taken. I was stunned that their entire airport only has eight nap rooms but that’s how it is. At that point I figured I’d go with a nice luxurious shower before our 14 hour flight. The shower area is in the first class section. I was ushered to one immediately since the lounge was empty. I wasn’t asked about amenities but I figured they would be in the shower room. Nope. There was one towel and one pump dispenser of soap. No toothbrush, no comb, no conditioner, nothing. Also the shower rooms were kept in the mid 80’s, which I personally think is way too hot.
I caught a little breakfast afterwards while my wife tried to sleep a little. The breakfast was fine. After a while we went to the other terminal for our pre-clearance for the USA.
Both of us really disliked the ground experience but conversely adored the actual flight. As long as you don’t have an extended connection time you should be fine. Feel free if you have any more questions or concerns.
Having flown all of the ME 3 (and Oman) in F the past year I can assure you that the ground service on EY is perfectly fine. While the lounge options are poor in DC that's just the nature of IAD. Lounge in AUH has historically been wonderful. I have not used the new F lounge in the new terminal as of yet, just the J lounge, but I assume it's as fine as the...
Having flown all of the ME 3 (and Oman) in F the past year I can assure you that the ground service on EY is perfectly fine. While the lounge options are poor in DC that's just the nature of IAD. Lounge in AUH has historically been wonderful. I have not used the new F lounge in the new terminal as of yet, just the J lounge, but I assume it's as fine as the old terminal. No, EY F is not the bling of EK, but it does the trick and I find it a far more personal experience.
Thank you for your comments. I've flown EY F a number of times and have always really liked it. Agree with your assessment of it vis a vis EK. EY use to have its own lounge at IAD that I thought was good but it's been a number of years since I flew EY out of IAD (pre Covid) so wasnt sure what they are using now at IAD. Regadless, I have access to the...
Thank you for your comments. I've flown EY F a number of times and have always really liked it. Agree with your assessment of it vis a vis EK. EY use to have its own lounge at IAD that I thought was good but it's been a number of years since I flew EY out of IAD (pre Covid) so wasnt sure what they are using now at IAD. Regadless, I have access to the Capital one Lounge at IAD which i think is great. And of course the service on EY will be wonderful. Looking forward to a great trip.
Little EY ground service. Use Lufthansa Senator lounge but not LH First Class portion. You’ll survive ;-)
Oh - So Lufthansa lounge is now Etihad's lounge? That's fine and I like that lounge.. . Though I wish they were using Air France, as that's across the way from the Etihad gate. Alas, first world problems. I'll survive.
Etihad is also starting a new route to Boston from Abu Dhabi on March 31. Do you know if the new planes will be used for that route too?
My flight from AUH to JFK on 3/13 had a seat map change. It was showing staggered, and now what seems like herringbone. New plane or do they have a 3rd variety?
@ ekartash -- Great catch, thanks! I just updated the post to reflect that. Lucky you, you're on one of the first long haul flights with the new jet!
We flew ORD-AUH-NRT (with a stopover) on our honeymoon on the A350 and 787 respectively and I genuinely preferred the old 787 seats. The A350 was nice and new with better tech, but felt 1: commodity (everyone has reverse herringbone) and 2: far less spacious. The 787 was a bit worn out but the concept of the seat is superior in my opinion. Both great flights, though!