{"id":946276,"date":"2026-10-25T23:52:29","date_gmt":"2026-10-25T23:52:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/946276\/"},"modified":"2026-10-25T23:52:29","modified_gmt":"2026-10-25T23:52:29","slug":"etihad-airways-takes-off-from-calgary-airport-for-first-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/946276\/","title":{"rendered":"Etihad Airways takes off from Calgary airport for first time"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Etihad Airways was cleared for takeoff Sunday, as its inaugural flight between Calgary and Abu Dhabi hit the skies.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Media got a tour of the Boeing 787-9 aircraft before passengers boarded the plane. The route is the <a data-ylk=\"slk:only direct flight;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas;\" data-yga=\"{&quot;yLinkElement&quot;:&quot;link&quot;,&quot;yLinkElementType&quot;:&quot;article_link&quot;}\" href=\"https:\/\/calgaryherald.com\/news\/calgary-to-get-western-canadas-only-direct-flight-to-uae\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">only direct flight<\/a> between Western Canada and the United Arab Emirates.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">When announcing the route earlier this year, Lena Havia, vice-president of alliances and joint ventures for Etihad Airways, said the route offers a direct link between two energy hubs, and for leisure travellers, it will allow easier access to the UAE&#8217;s &#8220;year-round sunshine,&#8221; while also serving as a &#8220;gateway to the Canadian Rockies.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The route will form part of the airline&#8217;s North American growth strategy, also serving Toronto and six destinations in the U.S., Havia said.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/398869a7810b514bedd4df824eb2c17e.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/54f7afe26a7cc54e7092443863172578.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/04f9ebae8aa4413f85fc2155b29b0cd9.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/fd1b41ddfa27fa6145e3d6b76e3ceba9.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/aa06fb729028ca70bc0e41d997e0ca46.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"L-R: President and CEO of Calgary Airports Chris Dinsdale and Minister of Jobs, Economy, Trade and Immigration Joseog Schow with a celebratory cake as Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/b8f90fc57a7c4f47799b60b7d8dd4fb7.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>L-R: President and CEO of Calgary Airports Chris Dinsdale and Minister of Jobs, Economy, Trade and Immigration Joseog Schow with a celebratory cake as Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">In a news release Sunday, Minister of Jobs, Economy, Trade and Immigration Joseph Schow said, &#8220;The launch of Etihad Airways&#8217; flight from Calgary to Abu Dhabi demonstrates the demand from around the world to do business with Alberta, and the growing relationship our province has built with the United Arab Emirates (UAE). As two of the world&#8217;s foremost energy producers, there is great potential for collaboration and economic benefit for both jurisdictions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">&#8220;This direct route creates a valuable link between Alberta and the UAE, making it easier for businesses, investors and travellers to connect,&#8221; Schow said. &#8220;This improved access means more opportunities to attract investment, build new trade and commercial relationships and bring more visitors to our province.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/df9c939842d2268264bb7c7bde03b759.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/f909325ef6560d3d70870fe4a3dade41.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/5d6508ea71e0414e55611870053f8acd.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/ed82b31c3c787636e45b81ae3edde8ee.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/1bc022c42c9a1a5f67b49cee0977a327.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/7a52dcb92b06d48abdc6319243d5704f.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/a8408c117e16fc0ab0b23ea20f0a1583.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/1364edb3c6344ce84da47563ca54466c.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/b79d0b45fd047731be26fba8aba4dd46.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p><img alt=\"Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/calgary_herald_articles_312\/7311c12f5f47862d2b1ff8e6d1c4d69f.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, celebrated the arrival of its inaugural flight to Calgary on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, marking a historic milestone as, for the first time, travellers can fly non-stop between Abu Dhabi and Calgary.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Catch up with the day&#8217;s headlines, curated by our editors and delivered to your email inbox at lunchtime on every business day. Sign up now for the Calgary Herald Noon News Roundup.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Etihad Airways was cleared for takeoff Sunday, as its inaugural flight between Calgary and Abu Dhabi hit the&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":946277,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194293],"tags":[49,2798,48],"class_list":["post-946276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-calgary","tag-ca","tag-calgary","tag-canada"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/946276","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=946276"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/946276\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/946277"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=946276"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=946276"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=946276"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}