EY

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Going RTW: Etihad First Class Lounge, Abu Dhabi Terminal 3

by Ajay 2 Comments

a man behind a bar

Introduction & Trip Index < EY205 (BOM-AUH), Etihad, Business              EY101 (AUH-JFK), Etihad, First> After a long trip on the bus again, we got out in the oven furnace kind of heat for just a brief moment and hopped into the Terminal 3 building. Even for transit passengers, there was going to be a security check. Like had become the trend so far, I was not being very impressed with the premium-ness of the Etihad experience. There was one premium screening queue as compared to the zillions for the non-premium passengers. And guess what, they closed out the queue right in front of me, transferring those passengers over to regular queue. Let the confusion ensue. After…

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Going RTW: Flight EY205 (BOM-AUH), Etihad, Pearl Business

by Ajay 6 Comments

an airplane on the runway at night

Introduction & Trip Index <Celebrations Lounge, Mumbai T2                     Etihad F Lounge, Abu Dhabi T3> Boarding was pretty disorganised, and I’d begin to think this was a Mumbai Airport feature but there are airlines such as Etihad, and back in the day, Kingfisher which would enforce boarding sequence pretty well. So, the incoming flight was delayed, however, instead of going back into the lounge, I just waited in the boarding area. This was my first time being at Gate 1B, so I wasn’t in the know of what I was getting into later. Boarding started about 20 minutes later, and business class was called first, being the highest cabin on this A320.…

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Going RTW: Celebrations Lounge, Mumbai Terminal 2

by Ajay 8 Comments

a sign on the wall of a building

Introduction & Trip Index < Introduction                               EY205, BOM-AUH, Etihad Business Class> The flight timings for Etihad to fly out of Mumbai are at a very odd hour at 4:50 AM in the morning. Odd for me I mean. I usually prefer day time flights, or even with a night flight, a departure closer to midnight so that I can get on the plane and go off to sleep at the earliest. Etihad offers a limousine pickup and drop service for customers flying with them in Business & First Class. Since I was flying Business Class between Mumbai to Abu Dhabi and First Class there on to…

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Going RTW: Introduction & Trip Index

by Ajay 6 Comments

Introduction Check-in: Celebrations Lounge, Terminal 2, Mumbai (BOM) Airborne: Flight EY205 (BOM-AUH), Etihad Airways, Pearl Business Class, Airbus A320-200 Check-in: Etihad First Class Lounge, Terminal 3, Abu Dhabi (AUH) Airborne: Flight EY101 (AUH-JFK), Etihad Airways, Diamond First Class, Airbus A340-600 Hotel Holiday Inn LaGuardia Airport, New York Check-in: Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge, Central Terminal, LaGuardia (LGA) Airborne: Flight UA343 (LGA-DEN), United Airlines, First, Boeing 757-200 Check-in: United Club West, Concourse B, Denver (DEN) Airborne: Flight UA4918 (DEN-COS), United Express, Economy, Dash 8-400 Cheyenne Resort, Colorado Springs Airborne: Flight AA1320 (DEN-DFW), American Airlines, First, Boeing MD-80 Airborne: Flight AA2493 (DFW-LAX), American Airlines, Coach, Boeing 757-200 Check-in: American Airlines/Qantas Flagship Lounge, Los Angeles (LAX) Airborne: Flight AA30 (LAX-JFK), American Airlines, Business,…

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I must be worth $250 as a JetPrivilege member

by Ajay 4 Comments

Like I wrote yesterday, Jet Airways finally dried the ink on their partnership with Etihad Airways. One fourth of the value of the whole transaction is being generated by the frequent flyer program of Jet Airways, which was spun off into a separate company in December 2012. Etihad is going to pay $150 million for a majority stake in the loyalty program, which I assumed was going to be about 60% at least. I tried valuing the different membership tiers to arrive at a value of each membership tiers, and this is pure speculation, but do tell me if you think this is in line with valuations you would expect to be a JetPrivilege member. Related Posts: Jet Privilege to…

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Jet Airways to sell 24% stake to Etihad Airways as well as JetPrivilege

by Ajay 2 Comments

This afternoon in India, Jet Airways’ Board of Directors put their agreement to receive a fresh induction of $380 million by Etihad Airways, who in turn will get 24% of the expanded equity capital of Jet Airways, thus making Jet Airways a part of the Equity alliance of Etihad Airways, where Etihad is sewing up partnerships with various airlines by picking up equity stakes in them. I first wrote about this possibility back in September and while the deal was close to being struck then, it took quite some back and forth in the few months ahead to come to a consensus. Etihad confirmed later in the day that they were taking the 24% stake for $379 million dollars, and…

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Etihad offering double miles on economy travel [targeted]

by Ajay Leave A Comment

Etihad is sending out targeted mailers to members of its Etihad Guest program, which offers double miles for those flying on Etihad flights before 30th May 2013 in their Coral Economy Class. This promotion, for those who receive it, is valid for tickets booked online, via the call center or via a travel agent as well. The promotion terms & conditions do mention that: This offer is exclusive to a select segment of Etihad Guests, and is available by invitation only. Bonus Miles Promotion is valid for bookings made between 21 April and 26 May 2013 for travel between 22 April and 30 May 2013. Promotion is valid only for travel in Coral Economy Class. The bonus miles earned will…

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Etihad upgrades its loyalty program with enhancements for top-tier

by Ajay 1 Comment

While my experience with Etihad Guest (Etihad’s loyalty program) has not been the best till date, Etihad may be a serious contender for loyalty games in India given that sooner than later they will have a equity tie-up with Jet Airways. Etihad introduced a Gold Elite tier in 2011, and offered status matches to their Gold tier in 2012, which was a botched up exercise at best. Just today, Etihad has enhanced, and by that I really mean enhanced, their benefits on the Etihad Guest Gold Elite tier, some of which are good additions. The new program enhancements include the following: Increase in tier bonus miles from 50% to 75% complimentary nomination to Etihad Guest Gold tier to a member…

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Jet-Etihad come closer, EY buys 9W’s LHR slots

by Ajay 2 Comments

Jet and Etihad have been known to be trying to make a deal since September 2012. Speculation about this deal came out about that time period, since when the deal moved towards closure. At this moment, we heard there is a little stall, with Etihad being worried about the Indian Government’s policies on aviation. The backroom also said there was difference of opinion on how the management of the airline and its board was supposed to be organised. This led to 9W’s faresale last week to generate cash as a precautionary measure. However, looks like things are falling in place now. To tide over the current difficulties, Jet Airways has concluded a deal yesterday, to sell its 3 airport slots…

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Jet Airways deal with Etihad Airways

by Ajay Leave A Comment

News of a strategic partnership between the airlines has been discussed since September 2012, and of late the news is hitting the peak, also helping the stock price of the listed entity Jet Airways in the meanwhile. While there was a lot of discussion earlier in the past week that grounded carrier Kingfisher was taking away the funding cake from Etihad, with the lollipop of handing out operational control to Etihad (along with a 46-49% equity stake), Kingfisher categorically denied the news. However, the board of Kingfisher airlines met last week as well, to limit investments by institutional investors to create space for an airline to take stake in it. Remember, time is running out for KFA who may have…

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Jet Airways on verge of strategic partnership with Etihad

by Ajay 1 Comment

In September, I had written about the possibility of Etihad investing in Jet Airways. Turns out I was not the only one who was thinking like that, even Jet & Etihad seem to be thinking on the same lines. As per Reuters, they have news from an insider Indian ministry of Civil Aviation that deal between Jet Airways and Etihad is almost a done deal, and will be at a substantial premium to the market price. Extracts from the news report filed: “The talks are on. This is more or less final. It may take around a month and half,” the government source told reporters, referring to the Jet-Etihad negotiations. “This deal is not just about investment but also technology…

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