Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – Etihad Airways, the UAE’s national airline, today flew the victorious Manchester City team home on a unique Club-liveried Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. The charter flight followed their historic Saturday night win in Istanbul and is the first time a European champion team has flown home on their own branded aircraft.
Etihad’s specially branded Dreamliner, registered A6-BND, flew the team from Istanbul to Manchester Airport on Sunday 11 June. The aircraft design honours the airline’s prestigious 14-year partnership with the Club and features Manchester City’s hallmark blue colour and club branding.
Antonoaldo Neves, Chief Executive Officer, Etihad Airways, said: “A first in the Club’s history, last night’s win is an outstanding achievement for our long-standing partners Manchester City. On behalf of the entire team at Etihad, our congratulations go to the fans, players, team and the visionary leadership at City. We are delighted to celebrate this momentous occasion by flying the new Champions of Europe home to Manchester on their very own Club-branded aircraft.
“We are sure the team will have enjoyed the highest levels of service and hospitality from our award-winning Cabin Crew as they celebrate their achievements on board,” he continued.
Ferran Soriano, Chief Executive Officer, City Football Group, commented: “This is a very special moment in the Club’s history and travelling back to Manchester in a specially liveried aircraft is a fitting way to mark such a historic weekend. We are delighted to be able to share this success with Etihad and thank them for their fantastic support as a long-term partner of the club.”
On the flight, the players were treated to a specially designed celebratory menu, cocktails in the team’s signature blue colour and themed treats.
The City branded Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner was introduced to Etihad’s fleet in October 2019 and has since flown to and from more than 60 destinations including Manchester, Melbourne, Paris, Singapore and the Maldives from its home in Abu Dhabi.
High resolution images available for download:
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About Etihad:
Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, was formed in 2003 and quickly went on to become one of the world’s leading airlines. From its home in Abu Dhabi, Etihad flies to passenger and cargo destinations in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia and North America. Together with Etihad’s codeshare partners, Etihad’s network offers access to hundreds of international destinations. In recent years, Etihad has received numerous awards for its superior service and products, cargo offering, loyalty programme and more.
Etihad sees tackling the climate crisis as the most important issue of our time and was named the Airline Ratings Environmental Airline of the Year 2022. Through strategic partnerships with major global aviation brands and OEMs, Etihad is relentless in its pursuit of industry decarbonisation.
To learn more, visit etihad.com.
About Manchester City Football Club:
Manchester City FC is an English Premier League club initially founded in 1880 as St Mark’s West Gorton. It officially became Manchester City FC in 1894 and has since then gone onto win the European Cup Winners’ Cup, nine League Championship titles, six FA Cups and eight League Cups. Manchester City FC is one of 13 clubs comprising the City Football Group.
Under manager Pep Guardiola, one of the most highly-decorated managers in world football, the Club plays its domestic and UEFA Champions League home fixtures at the Etihad Stadium, a spectacular 53,500 seat arena that City have called home since 2003. Today, the Stadium sits on the wider Etihad Campus, which also encompasses the City Football Academy, a state-of-the-art performance training and youth development facility located in the heart of East Manchester. Featuring a 7,000 capacity Academy Stadium, the City Football Academy is also where Manchester City Women’s Football Club and the Elite Development Squad train on a daily basis and play their competitive home games.
For more information, please visit www.mancity.com
For further details:
Duty Media Officer
Etihad Airways
Email: [email protected]
