by Donald Wood
Last updated: 5:45 PM ET, Thu June 22, 2017
The national airline of United Arab Emirates, Etihad Airways, has teamed with Asia's largest carrier, China Southern Airlines, to announce a new codeshare partnership that went into effect Thursday.
The new deal brings the number of codeshare agreements for Etihad to 53.
The partnership between Etihad and China Southern will allow passengers to book flights to and from Abu Dhabi, as well as connecting to Etihad's network of over 100 destinations worldwide.
"The codeshare partnership with China Southern Airlines is a significant milestone in the airlines' network development strategy and a key component of its footprint in the China market," Etihad Airways executive vice president Mohammad Al Bulooki said in a statement.
"This is a further example of our strategy of working with partners to extend our reach, and provide business and leisure travelers with more options."
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"We are excited about the new partnership with Etihad Airways, which will further strengthen the global network of both airlines and provide increased benefits to all our passengers," China Southern Airlines senior management Zhang Lin said in a statement.
"Through this partnership, China Southern Airlines will be able to extend our services globally via Etihad Airways' Abu Dhabi hub to the Middle East, Africa and Europe."
Both airlines are planning to implement a reciprocal loyalty program in the future to allow passengers to earn and redeem miles on each other's flights network-wide.
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