Etihad Airways eyes Airbus A330neo, more A350 orders

Etihad Airways has reportedly been in negotiations with Airbus to acquire its first A330neo aircraft, as well as additional A350s, ahead of the Dubai Airshow, which will begin on November 17, 2025.

According to a report by Reuters, citing people familiar with the matter, Etihad Airways has been negotiating with Airbus to acquire additional widebodies, which include an unspecified number of A330neo, presumably the A330-900, and A350 aircraft.

The order could be announced during the upcoming Dubai Airshow, which will run from November 17 to November 21. During the same event in 2013, Etihad Airways had made a big splash by announcing massive Airbus and Boeing orders, which were eventually reduced as the airline’s strategy of building a global network with stakes in various airlines did not pan out in the 2010s.

Etihad Airways bought into the Boeing 777X hype at the Dubai Airshow in 2013, becoming one of the first airlines to do so, with the airline ordering 17 777-9 and eight 777-8s, as well as 12 options for the 777X, “subject to program launch,” Boeing’s statement read at the time.

The order also included a purchase of 30 787-10s, with an additional 12 options for the largest 787.

In addition, the carrier bought up to 117 Airbus aircraft, split between 50 A350 and 36 A320neo family aircraft, as well as a single A330-200F at the same event in 2013.

Since then, it had trimmed its order book. Tony Douglas, the former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Etihad Airways, confirmed during the Dubai Airshow 2019 that it will take 20 fewer 787s, according to a report by Bloomberg. (Douglas now heads Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh Air.)

And then, as it recovered from its loss-making 2010s and the pandemic, it began buying aircraft once again.

According to orders and deliveries filings by both manufacturers, Etihad Airways has seven undelivered A350F and 11 A350-1000, as well as 20 A321neo aircraft, split between 10 A321neo and 10 A321LR. The latter A321LRs do not include the 20 aircraft of the type that it has planned to lease from AerCap.

Boeing’s unfilled orders showed that Etihad Airways has unfilled orders for 25 777X, four 787-9, and 20 787-10 aircraft as of October 31. According to planespotters.net, its only delivery in November so far includes a single A321LR, registered as A6-LRF, which arrived at Abu Dhabi Zayed International Airport (AUH) on November 13.

Planespotters.net also showed that while it already has nine A350-1000 in its fleet, the airline has no A330-800 or A330-900 jets. Before the pandemic, it operated an extensive fleet of A330ceo aircraft, with the last A330-200 leaving Etihad Airways’ fleet in June 2020.

Cirium’s Diio Mi showed that in 2019, the carrier’s A330s flew to a total of 48 destinations from AUH. Some airports saw Etihad Airways’ A330 aircraft a handful of times during the year, such as Madrid Barajas Airport (MAD) or Amman Queen Alia International Airport (AMM).

The carrier’s A330-200s were configured with 22 business and 240 economy class seats, while its A330-300s had eight first, 32 business, and 191 economy class seats. According to Airbus, the A330-800 has a typical three-class configuration of between 257 and 271 seats, while the A330-900, which offers more capacity yet less range, has a typical three-class configuration that welcomes between 287 and 303 passengers.

In comparison, Etihad Airways' 787-10s are configured with 32 business and 295 economy class seats, while the airline’s smaller 787-9 aircraft have three configurations: either eight first, 28 business, and 190 economy, 32 business and 271 economy, or 28 business and 262 economy class seats.