Etihad Scrapping San Francisco Service This Fall
Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways has said that it'll be discontinuing service to San Francisco (SFO), which it began back in 2014, as of October 29, 2017. What started as daily service operated by its Boeing 777-200LR has since been cut to three times weekly. After leaving SFO this fall, Etihad will maintain service from Abu Dhabi (AUH) to the following US airports:
- Chicago (ORD)
- Dallas (DFW)
- Los Angeles (LAX)
- New York (JFK)
- Washington, D.C. (IAD)
The carrier cited weak passenger demand as the reason for the end of the route, but said its other US routes are performing well. It's probably no coincidence that this announcement comes on the heels of the recently introduced carry-on electronics ban, which applies to Etihad flights entering the US. Worth noting, too, is that Air India flies nonstop between SFO and Delhi (DEL), which likely took away a good amount of business from the carrier.
H/T: Reuters