Etihad Cargo is set to introduce a twice-weekly Boeing 777 freighter service connecting Abu Dhabi and Madrid starting July 15, aiming to enhance its European network and bolster e-commerce connectivity from Asia to Europe via its Abu Dhabi hub.
The new service will operate from Abu Dhabi International Airport (AUH) to Adolfo Suárez Madrid–Barajas Airport (MAD) on Mondays and Wednesdays, with return flights from Madrid on Mondays and Thursdays. This addition recognizes Madrid’s significance as a major European fashion hub and will increase the total number of Etihad flights to Spain to 25 per week.
Currently, Etihad Cargo offers belly capacity through 10 Etihad Airways passenger flights to Madrid, 10 to Barcelona, and three seasonal flights to Malaga as part of the airline’s summer schedule. With the introduction of the new freighter service to Madrid, Etihad Cargo’s European freighter network will expand to 11 flights per week, complementing its existing six weekly flights to Amsterdam and three to Frankfurt.
In addition to the new Madrid route, customers will benefit from increased bellyhold capacity with the carrier’s summer schedule, which includes:
- Two weekly seasonal flights to Nice.
- Fourteen weekly flights to Athens, with two operating via Mykonos and two via Santorini.
- A new route to Antalya with three weekly flights.
- An increase in flights to Istanbul from ten to 14 per week starting July 22.
- Three additional flights to Dublin, totaling ten per week starting July 23.
Stanislas Brun, Vice President Cargo at Etihad Cargo, commented: “Launching Madrid as Etihad Cargo’s latest European freighter destination supports the growing demand for e-commerce flows between Asia and Europe. Madrid’s role as a key fashion hub makes it an essential destination for the carrier’s freighter network.”