Etihad Airways will launch scheduled flights between Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, and Baku, the capital city of the Republic of Azerbaijan, effective 2 March 2018.

The new route which will operate on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, is being introduced as a result of strong and growing demand for flights between the United Arab Emirates and Azerbaijan.

The service will be operated three times a week using a 136-seat Airbus A320, configured with 16 seats in Business Class and 120 in Economy.

Azerbaijan introduced a visa waiver programme for UAE nationals in November 2015 and expanded it to other GCC nations in early 2016. This prompted a surge in travel from across the GCC to the emerging tourist destination located at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, which offers visitors access to vast areas of unspoiled nature and centuries-old culture.

Baku, which sits on the Caspian Sea, is Azerbaijan's primary gateway and commercial centre.

During the first nine months of 2016, foreign tourists visiting Azerbaijan totalled 1.7 million. The number of visitors from the UAE and GCC increased 30 times on the same nine-month period in 2015, fuelled by the easing of visa restrictions.

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