Etihad Airways

LHR to Abu Dhabi. Thurs 14 August EY 12. Abu Dhabi to LHR Thurs 28 August EY 17. Check-in at LHR was fast and efficient flight left 1 hour late (approx) female flight attendants were sullen and any normal request eg asking for a glass of water was met with a disapproving look. Service was slow food ok although the cafeteria service was advertised as a choice of sandwiches we were just given 1 which was almost thrown on to our trays. The return flight was completely different service was efficient and with a smile and any request answered in a professional manner.

On July 1 2014 travelled with family from JFK to Islamabad Via Abu Dhabi. At JFK there were long lines to check in. Luckily our sky cap was able to get us checked in right away. We had checked in online night before but it did not matter. Flight was full. Food was mediocre. However during the flight cabin crew were pretty good in service. This airline needs to improve quality of food if it is to compete with Qatar and Emirates.

MEL-AUH GVA-AUH-MEL. Im 6.3 and found the seat right on the cusp of being too small so if you are 6.4 you'll have to bend your legs a little and may find it a little cramped. I travelled with my wife and for the long 14 hour trip we had the middle buddy seats and we really enjoyed it with the divider down of course. The shorter flight I had a window seat and found it to have slightly more leg room than the middle seats. I'm around the 90kg medium build mark. All the seats were comfortable. The pillows were proper pillows and the blankets very comfortable. Amenity pack also provided. Throughout the entire journey all staff were friendly and helpful whether it be at check in aircraft or the lounge. I do believe Etihad are in the process of having dedicated lounges which will also add to the whole experience. The Melbourne lounge is shared with several other airlines and not the greatest but its quiet and offers the basics. Abu Dhabi lounge is to small but for an hour stop over was adequate and had a large variety of food and drink on offer. Meals were very good and having the anytime menu is also a plus. Inflight entertainment was excellent. I would have liked noise cancelling headphones as is offered with some other airlines in business class but they were nevertheless comfortable. Aircraft were in excellent condition and pretty close to brand new. So overall a very good experience and wouldn't have a problem booking with them again.

EY 285 Aug 29th. EY 131 Aug 30th. Flew IAD-AUH-BLR round trip in Economy. 3 out of the 4 segments were delayed two were delayed for more than an hour. Had air conditioner issues for nearly 30 minutes on IAD-AUH segment. No reasoning for delays no proper announcements. No liquids service before the meals IFE is just ok. AUH doesn't have great transit facilities either overall would refer this airline only if the fares are way below the other carriers.

Kathmandu-Abu Dhabi-Manchester. Excellent flight with very good attendants and range of food. IFE could be better difficult to use and limited music choice. The lounge at Abu Dhabi was pretty full when we arrived in the evening as this was peak 'hub' time for Etihad and we had a long layover between connecting flights so not as quiet as anticipated.

Tokyo - Abu Dhabi and back on A330 in business for 2 adults and 2 children (46 years). Both flights on time. Flight from Tokyo with (much) better food than from Abu Dhabi (requested child meal was not available from Abu Dhabi also normal/Japanese food was much tastier delicious orange juice from Tokyo). Service hit and miss on one side of plane nice on another not so much. Flying nanny was very good with entertaining my children. Seats nice but too narrow especially on seats "outside" when you get bumped frequently. No much new movies in entertainment system. Overall nice flights but inconsistent.

Flight from Brisbane to Dublin via Melbourne Abu Dhabi Return CDG Abu Dhabi Singapore Brisbane. I have been a loyal Gold Member supporter of Etihad for many years and written many positive reviews so I guess it was only a matter of time before a negative one would take place! Traveled with Etihad Gold Guest Brisbane - Melb code shared with Virgin Australia. Check in easy at Brisbane lounge quite good (maybe 5.5 out of 10) and no glaringly obvious issues. Melbourne - Abu Dhabi upgraded to business class. (8 out of 10) good service. However business class beds really not as big or comfortable as represented in advertising (I am 6ft1). Abu Dhabi to Dublin - average - 6 out of 10. Arrived Dublin and luggage not there. Farcical is a polite way of describing what happened next. Assured it would be on next flight ex Abu Dhabi. All problems were blamed on Aer Lingus. Went to service desk at Dublin airport prior to leaving. Left Dublin for France a week later with still no luggage. Two weeks later return flight to Brisbane. Check in at (CDG Paris). Business / Gold member lounge excellent (10 out of 10). Flight CDG to Abu Dhabi (freezing cold) IFE Good meal service amateur at the most and they ran out of meals. (2 out of 10). Abu Dhabi airport on return trip a total complete and utter shambles. Completely out grown what it was designed for. Flight one hour late and using the same excuse that has been used for my past 7 flights. Arrive Singapore - excellent - good staff who want to do their jobs. In round and out quickly and professionally. Flight Singapore - Brisbane (4 out of 10). Staff appeared disinterested not enough drink runs (water) staff very busy chatting amongst themselves at the back of plane. Time for Etihad to really pull their finger out and improve to regain the quality airline they once were.

SIN to BNE in October 2013. Check-in was pretty uneventful. As for the flight itself I did not expect to have my economy seat to feel so cramped. Maybe because of the dark brown color scheme that it felt so cramped. Also that distinct Middle Eastern aircraft smell made my allergies act up throughout the flight. I wasn't able to enjoy the inflight entertainment because of my allergic condition. The meals were ok but nothing spectacular. Overall pretty much an average airline for economy class despite all the hoopla and press releases about it.

Okay service onboard with an ok selection of entertainment. Although the IFE starts well after taking off and gets taken away almost an hour before landing! Food was mediocre at best and very bland. There also seems to be a problem at Abu Dhabi airport (which is Etihad's home base) with luggage handling. Items get lost a lot ours included although we were one of the lucky ones whose bag was located and returned even if on the return journey. Customer service is shocking. Will never fly them again given the choice. Flight was also delayed for almost an hour leaving Abu Dhabi without explanation.

Recently flew business class from NY to Abu Dhabi For the amount of money I paid I would expect staff to treat passengers with respect they were very inattentive and frankly even rude to the business class customers. I fly to the Middle East on a regular basis and I have never experienced such inhospitable staff. The cabin temperature was far too cold and everyone was wrapped up in blankets. My food service was poor and the flight attendant kept bringing me the wrong order. When politely asked to change the temperature of the cabin or bring me the correct order the flight attendants gave inadequate responses. My inflight entertainment experience was also poor since they brought me damaged headphones and when I asked for a replacement they gave me cheap economy class headphones. Overall the ground staff and the onboard service was rude.