Etihad withdraws A380 from Mumbai airport

Mumbai airport’s joy of hosting three of the world’s largest aircraft, the Airbus A380, each day – the only airport in the country to do so – is going to be short-lived, with Etihad announcing the withdrawal of these aircrafts in Mumbai-Abu Dhabi circuit.

Though airport sources said the A380 service was being withdrawn owing to low demand for premium service in the market, the airline said the 496-seater aircraft is being withdrawn temporarily from Mumbai route as part of its “seasonal” adjustments.

“The adjustments are part of Etihad Airways’ seasonal planning of schedules based on market demand. Due to the capacity change, any affected guests will be re-protected on other flights to their final destination,” the airline said in a statement.

The airline is redeploying the aircraft to the Abu Dhabi-Paris route from July 1hoping it will attract premium passengers.

Last year, the Mumbai international Airport Ltd (MIAL) had improved airport infrastructure by adding additional Code F aerobridges (capable of simultaneously allowing entry and exit of passengers from both the upper and lower decks) to accommodate these large aircraft as each of them carry about



400 passengers in one go, thus reducing pressure on an overstretched airport like Mumbai.

Singapore Airlines and Emirates are the only other two airlines that operate the A380 from Singapore and Dubai to Mumbai, respectively. Etihad will now operate an Airbus A340 aircraft on Abu Dhabi-Mumbai route.

Airport sources said that loads in premium categories, ‘The Residence’ and first class on the Mumbai route have been poor and that may have prompted the airline to change the aircraft.

As part of its launch offer, a return ticket from Mumbai to Abu Dhabi for up to two passengers in The Residence was sold for around Rs 7 lakh. For London and New York, the tickets were priced at over Rs 35 lakh and Rs 50 lakh, respectively.

While the Air Passengers Association of India (APAI) president Sudhakar Reddy termed Etihad’s decision as “sad,” frequent flyer blog, Boarding Area, said in a post, “Ultimately, it comes down to the aircraft being the airlines flagship aircraft. And it’s sort of wasted on such a short flight. There is no way customers can get a full experience, and therefore the airline isn’t likely able to command much of a price premium because of the A380.”