Etihad Airways is expanding its flight options to Paris, planning to enhance the route to the French capital with four additional weekly flights using the Airbus A321LR aircraft. This model is a long-range version of the A321neo. The initiative is set to begin in February 2026, departing from Abu Dhabi Zayed International Airport to Paris-Charles de Gaulle. These new services, recorded as EY35/EY36, will join the existing flights operated by the airline’s Airbus A380 and Boeing 787-9.
“With its most recent schedule update, Etihad Airways has added one additional A321LR destination to the type’s network, Paris Charles De Gaulle Airport (CDG),” shared the company, citing data from Cirium’s Diio Mi airline planning tool.
In total, Etihad will operate 18 weekly flights to Paris in February and March 2026. The block time for the journey from Abu Dhabi to Paris stands at 470 minutes for the A321LR, slightly shorter than with other aircraft types. This further development of Etihad’s network is part of its strategic expansion plan for the A321LR fleet, which is set to touch over 15 destinations, including major European cities like Athens, Copenhagen, Düsseldorf, Milan, and Zurich, as well as African destinations like Algiers and Tunis starting in November.
According to reports, “Etihad Airways plans to take delivery of up to 20 A321LR aircraft in the coming years, with the first delivery seemingly planned in August.” Additionally, Etihad has announced routes to Asian destinations such as Hanoi and Phuket, which will debut flights on the A321LR later this year.
The A321LR aircraft will accommodate 160 passengers across three classes: first, business, and economy. This model is designed with a seating arrangement of two first-class, 14 business, and 144 economy seats. Business and first-class passengers will benefit from lie-flat seats.
The expansion comes after financial recovery efforts by Etihad Airways, which reported a net profit after several years of losses. The company posted a core operating result of $296 million in H1 2022 and a net profit of $25 million by the end of the year, improving further to $143 million in 2023.
