airBaltic Launches Flights Between Riga and Abu Dhabi

airBaltic has launched direct flights between Riga International Airport in Latvia and Abu Dhabi in the UAE.

The airline operates an Airbus A319 aircraft four times a week between the Latvian capital and Etihad Airways’ Abu Dhabi hub.

The aircraft is configured with 14 seats in business class and 102 seats in economy class.

Etihad Airways has placed its ‘EY’ flight code on the new airBaltic-operated service, and beyond to 15 cities including Alesund, Barcelona, Bergen, Billund, Copenhagen, Helsinki, Lappeenranta, Oslo, Prague, Stavanger, Stockholm, Tallinn, Turku, Vienna and Vilnius.

Subject to regulatory approvals, airBaltic will soon place its ‘BT’ flight code on Etihad Airways flights beyond Abu Dhabi to Cairo, Jakarta, Singapore, Bangkok, Amman and Muscat.

Latvian Prime Ministir Vladis Dombrovskis, said, “Today marks the first time Riga has been linked by air with Abu Dhabi, one of the world’s fastest growing cities, and a global hub for airBaltic’s codeshare partner Etihad Airways. This direct flight will open up a range of business and leisure opportunities, which previously never existed. It will support trade development between Latvia and the rest of the world, increase tourism in both directions, and result in a range of new connection options for customers of both airlines.”

Hareb Al Muhairy, Etihad Airways’ Vice President UAE, added, “Global reach is beyond the capacity of any single airline and our view is that progress must come through partnership. Today marks the official start of our partnership with airBaltic, and the first time we have been able to offer Riga as an Etihad Airways codeshare destination.”

In 2012 Latvia’s exports to the UAE reached EUR 72 million, 102% up on 2011.