Etihad Airways will temporarily stop all flights to, from, and via Abu Dhabi following a directive from the United Arab Emirates government to fight the spread of coronavirus.
The National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority and the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) have decided to suspend all inbound, outbound, and transit passenger flights in the UAE.
The suspension of flights to and from Abu Dhabi International Airport will commence at 23:59 UAE local time (19:59 GMT) on Wednesday (March 25) and will last for an initial 14 days.
Cargo and emergency evacuation flights are exempt and will continue.
Tony Douglas, group chief executive, said: “These are unprecedented times and unprecedented decisions are being made by governments, authorities and companies, including Etihad, to contain the spread of the coronavirus and to help minimise its effects around the world.
“We stand with our loyal customers, who are having to endure disruption and inconvenience to their travel and their daily lives, and we dedicate all our efforts and resources to ensuring we do all we can to assist them with their travel planning during this challenging period.
“As the national airline, we stand in full support of the UAE government’s decision and are confident that we’re well prepared to weather the commercial and operational impact this suspension will have on our services.”
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Yesterday (March 22), Emirates said it will suspend most of its flights, also from Wednesday.