Members of the cargo industry from more than 100 countries voted Etihad Airways cargo airline of the year in an awards program sponsored by Air Cargo News of New York. Etihad Crystal Cargo was officially launched in September 2004 and provides freight services on the airline’s passenger fleet to 42 worldwide destinations. It also operates three Airbus A300-600RF freighters.
Based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, the airline was established in 2003 as the national airline of the UAE.
In the first quarter of 2007, Etihad reported an increase of 176% in passenger traffic (to 1,031,837 passengers) compared with its first quarter enplanements for the prior first quarter.
Etihad will take delivery of 10 aircraft in 2007, increasing its fleet to 31 aircraft.