Saudia, UAE’s Etihad announce codeshare partnership

Saudi Arabia’s state-owned airline Saudia and the UAE’s Etihad Airways have announce a codeshare partnership that will cover 41 destinations on both carriers’ networks, according to a company statement on Monday.

In addition to the codeshare deal, the two airlines have also revealed plans for greater commercial cooperation in other fields, including frequent flyer program benefits, cargo, and engineering and maintenance.

“The new partnership broadens aviation and transport links with the United Arab Emirates, building on the extensive aviation investment and strong foundation in the sector,” said Saleh bin Naser Al Jasser, Director General of Saudi Arabian Airlines.

Under the new partnerhip, Etihad Airways will place its ‘EY’ code on Saudia’s flights to Abha, Al-Baha, Alula, Arar, Bisha, Dammam, Dawadmi, Gassim, Gizan, Gurayat, Hail, Hofuf, Jeddah, Jouf, Madinah, Qaisumah, Rafha, Riyadh, Sharurah, Tabuk, Taif, Turaif, Wadi-Ad-Dawasir, Wedjh, Yanbo, and Abu Dhabi. Other destinations, such as Port Sudan, Tunis, Alexandria, Sharm el-Sheikh, Multan and Peshawar are subject to government approval.

At the same time, Saudia will place its ‘SV’ code on Etihad flights to Baku, Chengdu, Ahmedabad, Nagoya, Tokyo-Narita, Dammam, Jeddah, Madinah, Riyadh, Belgrade, Seychelles, Chicago-O'Hare, and Abu Dhabi.

Meanwhile, teams at the Etihad Guest and Alfursan frequent flyer programs are “finalizing discussions which would see members of each program being offered reciprocal earn and burn opportunities,” the statement said.

Both airlines are also in talks about greater cooperation on the cargo side.

In addition, Etihad Airways Engineering will provide select maintenance services  for Saudi aircraft at its MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Operations) facility in Abu Dhabi.