Two of the Gulf’s major carriers are switching their Moscow services from Domodedovo to Sheremetyevo airport.
Qatar Airways’ first flight to Sheremetyevo touched down on October 31, with Etihad set to follow next month.
The move follows the opening of a third runway at Sheremetyevo, and the unveiling of the first phase of the airport’s new Terminal C at the beginning of 2020.
Qatar Airways also coincided the switch in services with the debut of its Q Suite business class product on its Moscow flights. Flight schedules are now as follows:
Doha-Moscow
Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday
- QR337 departs Doha at 0800, arrives into Moscow Sheremetyevo at 1310
Monday, Thursday and Saturday
- QR339 departs Doha at 0240, arrives into Moscow Sheremetyevo at 0750
Moscow-Doha
Daily
- QR338 departs Moscow Sheremetyevo at 1810, arrives into Doha at 2305
Meanwhile Etihad “will transfer all Russian operations to the new state-of-the-art International Terminal C at Moscow Sheremetyevo Alexander S Pushkin International Airport” from December 2, with the first departure set to take place on the 13th anniversary of Etihad’s first direct service to Moscow.
As part of the move the carrier is to expand its partnership with Aeroflot, with the Russian carrier launching its first ever flights to Abu Dhabi on November 13.
Etihad also said that “In conjunction with both carriers operating between Moscow and the UAE capital, and subject to any necessary regulatory approvals, Etihad and Aeroflot have agreed to enhance their interline agreement, launch codeshare services across their respective networks, and explore other areas of cooperation to enhance guest benefits, such as frequent flyer reciprocity and premium customer handling”.
Daily schedules will be as follows:
- EY63 departs Abu Dhabi at 0935, arrives into Moscow Sheremetyevo at 1425
- EY64 departs Moscow Sheremetyevo at 1550, arrived into Abu Dhabi at 2215
