Etihad Airways pilots will be able to interchangeably operate Airbus A350 or A380 aircraft, becoming one of the first airlines in the world to achieve this milestone following what they described as a «rigorous process of regulatory approvals and pilot training».
As detailed by Etihad in a statement, normally airlines pilots usually fly only one aircraft family regularly, but when there is high similarity in the cockpit, through the application of a specific program approved by the aircraft manufacturer and the civil aviation authority, known as «Mixed Fleet Flying», the interchangeable operation is enabled.
See also: The A380 continues to return to more markets: Etihad will deploy them on flights to New York
«Etihad Airways is proud to be the one of the very first airlines to qualify its pilots to fly both the Airbus A350 and A380,» said Mohammad Al Bulooki, COO of the airline.
«This achievement will enhance the resilience and flexibility of the airline’s network and is testament to our commitment to continuously push the boundaries of efficiency, innovation, and customer satisfaction, and at all times ensuring safety is Etihad’s number one priority,» he added.
The Abu Dhabi-based airline had already obtained similar approvals over the last decade for pilots to operate interchangeably between the A320 and A330, A330 and A340, and Boeing 777 and 787 fleets.
Etihad’s current fleet consists of 13 A320s, 9 A321s, 5 A350-900s, 4 A380s (plus 6 in permanent storage), 9 B777-300ERs, 5 B777Fs, 30 B787-9s, and 10 B787-10s.
Its A380s are only deployed on the route between Abu Dhabi and London-Heathrow with 25 weekly flights (to which New York will be added in April), while the A350s operate to Chicago-O’Hare, Tokyo-Narita, Dublin, Delhi, and Paris-CDG.
