Etihad Airways "Residence" suite on A380 selling out quickly

Thirteen “flying butlers” have completed a three-week course on etiquette, protocol, valet skills and concierge services and are ready to attend passengers in what will be the airline industry’s swankiest cabin, the $20,000-a-trip, three-room Residence with double bed, living area and shower cubicle.

(Photo by Harry Page)

The $20,000 ‘Residence’ suite on Etihad Airways first Airbus Group A380 superjumbo, featuring three rooms and a dedicated butler, is already sold out for the initial 10 flights, the Gulf carrier said.

Bookings for the ultra-luxurious cabin boasting a double bed, living area and shower cubicle are running far ahead of the usual 50 percent reservation-rate for first-class berths, Etihad Chief Executive Officer James Hogan said today in Dubai.
 
“We’ve been quite happy with the takeup,” Hogan said at an industry conference. “There’s a market there.” The price charged for the sole Residence berth on each A380 will cover a one-way, eight-hour trip only, while permitting dual occupancy.

Etihad’s first A380 will fly between the No. 3 Gulf carrier’s Abu Dhabi base and London from Dec. 27. Hogan is betting the industry’s most luxurious inflight product will help lure top-paying travelers from larger local rivals Emirates of Dubai, the top superjumbo operator, and Qatar Airways, which added the model last month, as well as global operators such as Singapore Airlines, which pioneered the plane in 2007.
 
Etihad has 10 A380s on firm order and also plans to deploy aircraft two and three on the London route, which will become an all-superjumbo service with three daily flights. The model will also serve Sydney and New York later in 2015.

Etihad Airways Chief Executive Officer James Hogan said, “We’ve been quite happy with the takeup. There’s a market there."

(Photographer: Alessia Pierdomenico/Bloomberg) 

 

Emirates is working on a first-class upgrade, while Qatar Airways has limited the offering -- which it says includes the industry’s widest seat -- to its A380s and Boeing 787s.

Growth Hurdle

Hogan said that Gulf carriers are finding expansion plans under threat from regulators in Europe and the U.S., even where bilateral accords should permit great competition through additional services and cooperation with local partners.

“What we are seeing is huge pressure from the U.S. and Europe challenging the air service agreements of the Gulf airlines,” he said. “That protectionism, we argue, certainly constrains global development and restricts choice.”
 
A dispute with German authorities over a code-share agreement between flight Etihad and Air Berlin, in which the Middle Eastern carrier owns a minority holding, is “all about protecting” Lufthansa, he said.

Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr, who took over in May, has cited competition from Gulf airlines as his biggest challenge, saying that while the company “can handle” discount operators such as Ryanair that are on a level playing field, “with the Gulf carriers it’s different.”

(Deena Kamel Yousef - Bloomberg News)