Etihad adds Charlotte service in latest US expansi...

Etihad Airways simply introduced its sixth U.S. vacation spot — and it is certainly one of America’s busiest East Coast airports.

The Gulf service on Friday introduced it plans to launch service to Charlotte Douglas Worldwide Airport (CLT) within the spring of 2026

The nonstop flights between the Southeast hub and Abu Dhabi will get began on Could 6 — slightly below a 12 months from now, so should you’re hoping to make use of miles to ebook a business-class seat, the primary few flights at the moment are open for reserving.

Including Charlotte will give Etihad a half-dozen U.S. cities, together with Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Worldwide Airport (ATL), the place it is on track to start flying in July.

Charlotte vacationers will not see the ultra-swanky, TPG Award-winning Etihad Apartments first-class product discovered on the service’s Airbus A380 superjumbos, however the airline is mostly identified for a extra upscale expertise.

Learn extra: The best luxury suites in the sky and how to fly them

Etihad plans to function its CLT-AUH route with a two-cabin Boeing 787-9 that includes its lie-flat business-class product and financial system.

You’ll be able to see how the itinerary will shake out, beginning subsequent Could. It is an early afternoon, 2:40 p.m. departure from CLT, with the touchdown simply after midday the next day in Abu Dhabi, with a flight time of 13 hours and 45 minutes.

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It is a 3 a.m. departure, native time, en path to Charlotte on the westbound flight, with a same-day arrival at 10:15 a.m.

Etihad will function the flights between Charlotte and Abu Dhabi 4 occasions every week as soon as the service will get began.

The airline’s Etihad Guest loyalty program is a switch companion of some main U.S. bank card packages, together with American Express Membership Rewards, Capital One and Citi.

Plus, Etihad has loyalty partnerships with that permit redemptions by means of JetBlue’s TrueBlue program and American Airways AAdvantage.

It is price noting, Charlotte is filled with AAdvantage loyalists, as a fortress hub for the service.

Etihad isn’t American’s solely Gulf companion; Doha-based Qatar is a full-fledged Oneworld Alliance member.

Nonetheless, Etihad’s presence in Charlotte ought to provide an attractive new long-haul possibility for flyers.

Etihad might be solely the second airline based mostly exterior the U.S. serving Charlotte — along with Lufthansa.

Vacationers flying on Etihad from Abu Dhabi again to Charlotte (or different U.S. locations) could make use of the U.S. preclearance facility, which permits vacationers to undergo passport management and clients earlier than the flight, eliminating the effort afterward.