Etihad resumes commercial operations to Maldives after near 4-month halt

Etihad Airways, a flag carrier of the United Arab Emirates, has resumed its commercial operations to Maldives.

Etihad’s first flight to Male’ after a pause of nearly four months landed at the Velana International Airport on Saturday afternoon.

The airline has announced it will be holding two weekly flights between Male’ and Abu Dhabi on its A320 planes.

After nearly 4 months the first commercial @etihad flight landed @VelanaAirport today.#HappyToSeeYouAgain pic.twitter.com/SALsKvEjd3

— MACL (@MACLmedia) July 18, 2020

Maldives suspended the issuance of on-arrival of visa and closed its borders in face of the coronavirus pandemic on March 27.

Etihad had operated two daily flights between Male’ and Abu Dhabi prior to the closure of the borders.

Maldives, one of the world’s most sought after tourist destinations, reopening its borders to international travel last week, on July 15.

Qatar Airways and SriLankan Airlines resumed operations the same day, while Emirates, another flag carrier for UAE, resumed operations the next day.

Additional airlines Gulf Air, British Airways, Hong Kong Airlines, IndiGo, Silk Air, and Singapore Airlines are scheduled to resume operations in August, while Edelweiss Air is set to begin operations in September and Turkish Air in October.

The Maldivian government has announced it expects to see 850,000 tourist arrivals this year, including the 382,762 tourist arrivals recorded prior to the closure of the borders - a major blow to a country that had enjoyed a record 1.7 million tourist arrivals last year.

In an attempt to boost the country’s travel and tourism industries, MACL has rolled out significant discounts for airlines and tourist service counters, while Maldives Marketing and Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) has launched a global advertising campaign with CNN to promote Maldives as a tourist destination.