The first Air France flight between Abu Dhabi and Paris arrived in the capital of the United Arab Emirates on Monday.
The Airbus A350-900 plane took off from Paris-Charles de Gaulle at 9:15 p.m. on Sunday and arrived at Abu Dhabi International Airport at 6:45 a.m. on Monday. The return flight will depart Abu Dhabi every day at 8:45 a.m. and arrive in Paris at 1:15 p.m.
The 324-seater consists of 34 seats in business class, 24 in premium economy class and 266 in economy class.
The launch of the route linking the two capitals comes as Air France celebrates its 90th anniversary.
“We are deeply honored to be here and are confident that our passengers will be excited to explore the culture, heritage and opportunities in both cities,” said Angus Clarke, chief commercial officer of Air France-KLM.
“In the UAE’s Year of Sustainability, it is an opportunity to share Air France’s commitment to supporting Abu Dhabi’s mandate for sustainable tourism and helping to achieve the emirate’s tourism goals,” he added.
Last month, Abu Dhabi Etihad Airlines and the Air France-KLM Group signed a preliminary contract to expand their flight codeshare agreement. The agreement allows both partners offer more destinations to its passengers and explore collaboration through loyalty programs, talent development and maintenance.
The two airlines, which signed codeshare and interline agreements in 2012said more than 40 new routes covering destinations in Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Australia are now available for travel in the winter 2023 season.
In addition to Abu Dhabi, Air France said it will add more than 28 weekly flights to Middle East destinations during the winter, including Dubai, Beirut and Cairo.
“France and the United Arab Emirates have strong and long-standing strategic partnerships, and travel and tourism has always played an important part of this valuable exchange of cultures,” said Maureen Bannerman, Chief Commercial Officer of Abu Dhabi Airports. “We look forward to welcoming the French national airline to Abu Dhabi International Airport and reinvigorating travel experiences between the two popular destinations.”
Updated: October 30, 2023 at 3:11 p.m.
