Summary

  • Etihad partners with AirFi for wireless In-Flight Entertainment on 10 of the airline’s A320 family aircraft.
  • Passengers can stream movies, music, & shows directly to their own devices.
  • The partnership has the potential to expand to more aircraft types.

Etihad has partnered with AirFi to provide wireless In-Flight Entertainment for customers traveling onboard the carrier’s fleet of Airbus A320 family aircraft. This allows passengers to stream content directly onto their own devices, which has been a growing trend with several airlines in various parts of the world.

To your own screens

Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways has partnered with AirFi to provide wireless In-Flight Entertainment services for its passengers flying onboard its narrowbody Airbus A320 family aircraft. The system has gone live on 10 of the aircraft today, and this will allow passengers flying onboard these aircraft to stream content, such as movies, TV shows, music, and more, straight to their own screen.

AirFi states that its collaboration with Etihad has been extensive. This milestone of successfully deploying the technology on 10 aircraft was achieved in less than a month of the two organizations signing the partnership agreement.

Etihad A320 taxiing

Photo: Markus Mainka | Shutterstock

The partnership between Etihad and AirFi has the potential to expand, with the system possibly being deployed on more aircraft, both within the airline’s fleet and new incoming aircraft. However, it is unclear if the extended deployment of this technology will include widebody aircraft.

Etihad’s A320s

The A320 family aircraft is the only narrowbody aircraft that the airline operates. Etihad’s narrowbody fleet consists of 28 aircraft, which is further split into Airbus A321-200s and Airbus A320-200s. Depending on the aircraft type and the internal configurations, these aircraft can accommodate configuration between 132 and 196 passengers. The larger A321-200 has the following capacity:

Airbus A321-200

Cabin Class

Capacity

Business Class

8

Economy Class

188

Total

196

Etihad A321-200

Photo: Nordroden | Shutterstock

Meanwhile, Etihad’s Airbus A320-200s are configured to have two different passenger capacities. The key difference is that one of the configurations is used on a premium-dense route, which sees the aircraft have more Business Class seats, reducing the number of economy class seats.

Airbus A320-200

Normal Configuration

Premium-Dense Configuration

Business Class

8

Business Class

16

Economy Class

150

Economy Class

120

Total Capacity

158

Total Capacity

132

While the airline downsized a few years ago for restructuring, the carrier over the past two years has been rebuilding its route network and increasing fleet size as the airline finds itself in a stronger position. From returning its Airbus A380-800s to commercial service and restarting flights, the carrier has seen a 40% year-on-year increase in passengers carried.

Related

40% Yearly Increase: Etihad Has Carried 8.7 Million Passengers In 2024

The airline added eight new destinations to its network in June.

Rebuilding network, rebuilding fleet

Since last year, Etihad has been busy strategically growing its network and fleet as the airline expands and takes advantage of the recovery in post-pandemic passenger demand. Earlier this month, the carrier added more frequencies to its North American destinations, such as Boston and Airbus.

Furthermore, the carrier is set to deploy its Airbus A380-800s to two more destinations later this year.

Etihad A380 flying

Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

Additionally, the carrier has announced more services and frequencies for the Winter 2024 schedule, which will be catered for, as the airline takes delivery of more new aircraft.


  • Etihad Boeing 787-9

    Etihad Airways

    IATA/ICAO Code:
    EY/ETD

    Airline Type:
    Full Service Carrier

    Hub(s):
    Abu Dhabi International Airport

    Year Founded:
    2003

    CEO:
    Tony Douglas

    Country:
    United Arab Emirates

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