Etihad Airways has announced the launch of flights from Abu Dhabi to Almaty and other cities in Central Asia and the South Caucasus, beginning in March 2026.
The airline’s announcement followed the Hungarian low-cost carrier Wizz Air’s decision to suspend flights to the region starting September 2025.
In total, Etihad Airways is expanding its network with seven new destinations: Almaty (Kazakhstan), Baku (Azerbaijan), Bucharest (Romania), Medina (Saudi Arabia), Tbilisi (Georgia), Tashkent (Uzbekistan) and Yerevan (Armenia).
Flights to Medina are scheduled to begin in November 2025, while services to the other cities will commence in March 2026.
| Destination | Starting date | Flight rate |
| Medina | Nov. 9, 2025 | 6 flights |
| Baku | March 2, 2026 | 10 flights |
| Yerevan | March 9, 2026 | 10 flights |
| Tbilisi | March 13, 2026 | 8 flights |
| Almaty | March 16, 2026 | 8 flights |
| Bucharest | March 16, 2026 | 4 flights |
| Tashkent | March 17, 2026 | 6 flights |
Tickets are already available for booking on the airline’s website. The one-way Almaty-Abu Dhabi fare starts at $404. This price includes only 7 kilograms of carry-on luggage. By comparison, Wizz Air offers the same route for a price nearly three times lower, starting at $134, with up to 10 kilograms of hand luggage included.
Earlier this year, Etihad began flights to Prague, Warsaw, Sochi and Atlanta and also announced new seasonal destinations for summer 2026, including Krakow (Poland), Salalah (Oman) and Kazan (Russia). The carrier has pledged to launch 13 more routes by the end of 2025.
Currently, low-cost carrier Wizz Air operates flights between Abu Dhabi and Almaty; however, it will suspend all flights from the capital of the United Arab Emirates starting September 2025. The decision was attributed to instability in the Middle East and difficulties with logistics. Notably, in mid-June, Wizz Air had already suspended its Abu Dhabi-Astana service, along with routes to Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Israel and Jordan.
Yesterday, on July 15, South Korean low-cost air carrier EastarJet launched direct flights between Almaty and Busan, marking the inaugural service on that route.
