Etihad Airways’ New Airbus Order

Etihad Airways has followed through on a highly touted deal, with a commitment to purchase more Airbus aircraft formally announced.

Signed on Day 2 of the 2025 Dubai Airshow, the Abu Dhabi-based carrier is boosting its commitment to passenger and freighter aircraft, with the inclusion of a new model as well.

Under the new deal, Etihad Airways will acquire 6 Airbus A330neos, a brand-new fleet type for the airline, following its prior use of the A330ceo throughout the 2010s, when it streamlined and retired the model.

However, away from the firm order for six A330-900s with Airbus, the airline has also agreed a contract with leading aircraft lessor Avolon for nine of the model, bringing the fleet to 15 once all is said and done.

Additionally, Etihad Airways has returned to the market for more A350 family jets, confirming it would acquire another seven of the high-capacity A350-1000s.

For the Etihad Cargo division, three of the upcoming dedicated freighters, the A350F, have been ordered. This freight model is expected to launch later this decade, with the first unit entering key production phases.

This latest order from the airline is off the back of an incredibly solid 2025, where records were broken in more ways than one as the business took the neccesary steps to grow its market share and continue to rebuild the network.

These aircraft strengthen our operations across medium-haul, long-haul, and cargo. The A330neo brings the right combination of efficiency and flexibility for our regional and mid-range growth, while the A350-1000 continues to deliver exceptional performance on our long-haul network. The A350F freighter adds significant capability to our cargo division as global demand continues to expand. Our partnership with Airbus continues to play an important role in shaping our future fleet, and we are proud to be building one of the world’s most modern and efficient widebody operations.

Antonoaldo Neves, Etihad Airways CEO.

For Airbus, the deal also represents a step in the right direction for its A350F, which has encountered some adversity despite positive production progress, following delays and recent order shuffles due to plateauing demand and strategy shifts from existing customers.

Etihad Airways New Era Continues

The latest purchase of new Airbus commercial aircraft by Etihad Airways cements its intention to grow in the coming years under its Journey 2030 initiative.

That Journey 2030 initiative has also now seen a slight adjustment, and the airline would argue for the better with now hopes of having a fleet reach 200 aircraft off the back of incredibly solid perfromance in recent times.

Having 200 aircraft in its fleet is up from the 170 that were hoped to be achieved by the end of the decade, and the airline also aims to be carrying 37 million passengers by 2030, a staggering increase from the 30 million previously targeted.

While Etihad Airways believes achieving all these figures is within reach, driven by the successful delivery of many new planes, it remains incredibly wary of ongoing supply chain issues that have delayed aircraft deliveries worldwide.

Speaking with Gulf News, the airline’s CEO said that there are delays within its own operation that are a joke, as it was just recently informed of delays stretching into 2027 and 2028, three years out and highlighting the pressures the business feels.

Worse still, the warning Etihad Airways has is bold but realistic: supply chain discomfort is going to continue forever, as simply put, the number of suppliers is limited, and with that, there’s little competition and therefore a lack of availability in more ways than one.

Despite obstacles remaining across the industry, Etihad Airways is confident in its ambitions, and the up-gauging of targets under the Journey 2030 initiative certainly highlights the direction it hopes to head.