Etihad Airways' Competitors in the First and Business Class in Asian Market - Case Study Example

A market research and analysis report for Etihad Airways Introduction Etihad airway is one of the world’s leading airlines. It is owned by United Arab Emirates. It was founded by Royal decree in 2003. It is the fastest growing airline. The hub of the airline is Abu Dhabi, which is the capital city of United Arab emirates (Etihad Airways, 2010). The airline has about 54 aircrafts, which operates about 1000 flights on weekly basis, which serves 64 international network destinations in 42 countries (Delfmann 45). The airline is seeking to be a reflection of best Arabian hospitality and enhancement of prestige of Abu Dhabi. The airline received world’s leading airline award in 2009. The airline provides its customers with superior travel experience both on the ground and in-flight. The airline has upgraded its aircraft in the economy class and business class cabins. The firm has introduced a new first class suite that will be available by the end of 2010 on all three-class aircraft. Etihad Airways’ competitors in the First Class and Business Class in Asian market First class and business class are usually preserved for corporate and wealthy travelers. These individuals account for the highest percentage of the profitability of an airline especially on the lucrative transpacific and transatlantic business routes. Etihad introduced First Class seating in its long overhaul in 2006 (Saudi Arabian Airlines, 2010). This is being replaced by the new first class suite (Katsioloudes 62). The main competitors of Etihad airways in the First class and business class in Asian market include Air India, emirates airline, Gulf air, Kuwait airways, Qatar airways and Saudi Arabia airline (SKYTRAX, 2010). The new seats being introduced in Etihad’s aircrafts are following the lead of Emirates and Jet Airways. Etihad airways have the best First class product and service according to Skytrax survey. First Class and Business Class product value propositions of Etihad Airways and each of its competitors The proposition of Etihad’s new first class suite comes with various features. The firm offers free chauffeur drive of up to 150 miles to its first class travelers and 100 miles for its business class travelers (SKYTRAX, 2010). Diamond first class travelers on Etihad airways have been using the superb virgin Atlantic clubhouse in T3 until recently when it introduced T4 at the end of September as its own lounge. The Qatar airlines are also using the virgin Atlantic clubhouse in T3 as a lounge. The new seats in Etihad airlines are following the lead of Emirates and Jet Airways as they are being incorporated into a suite that comes with privacy, increased storage and greater comfort. The suite has sliding doors that have Arabic style which details for privacy in addition provision of more room than that found in diamond first class (Etihad Airways, 2010). The firm is striving to establish itself as a premium luxury brand that has undifferentiated superiority. The seat is capable of extending in to a fully flat bed. They can also rotate at an angle of 180 degrees to enable conversation and meals to be shared among several travelers. The seat comes with a built in massager, adjustable headrest and lumbar support in addition to power sockets in which a UK three point plug can fit directly, audio jack and an Ethernet port. The first class suites also have E-box, which is Etihad’s latest incarnation of IFE entertainment system that has the latest audio and video on demand. The system has over 600 hours of programming and a 23” wide LCD screen to watch the video on (Etihad Airways, 2010). The suite also has storage spaces one of which has two bottles of water of which one is sparkling and the other is still (SKYTRAX, 2010). There is also a wardrobe and bags can be stored under the seat. The suite also has an additional cupboard where additional bags can be stored. The cupboard has covers for the suite or clothes stored there. The cabin lacks overhead locks, which makes them to be more spacious. The configurations of the suites are 1-2-1 and are 12 in total. All the seats are excellent and one can sit anywhere unless travelling with a colleague in which case the middle suites are preferable. During the flight, the passengers are offered sleeping suit prior to take off of the flight. The 12 first class seats have two washrooms although one of these washrooms is used as a changing room since it is spacious (Etihad Airways, 2010). The changing room is decked out with flecked black decorations even though the floor is sloppy. The room also has a long mirror with a leather seat, which allows the passengers to freshen up as change either before or after take off. The business class seats are capable of reclining into flat beds of 6 ft 1 in in length. The seats in business class suite are accessible to the isle (AsiaTravelTips.com, 2010). They also come with individual lighting and a lamp for reading. All seats have laptop power cable that supplies AC power and hence passengers can use their laptops during flight without the fear of running out of power. The business class suite has 15-inch personal screens, which are provided for personal in-flight entertainment systems. Compared to those in other airlines, these screens are the largest. The travelers in this class can use lounges, which belong to Etihad and its associate partners. The market perceptions of Etihad Airways’ First Class and Business Class Some of the customers of the airline find the business class to be one of the best. The passengers appreciate the entertainment provided and find it to be good and varied. The also find the beds to be good since they are fully flat (AsiaTravelTips.com, 2010). The pillow and blankest provided by the airline makes sleeping during flight more comfortable on the flat beds. For couples travelling together in business class in Etihad airlines, the center two seats are preferred. Some passengers find the seats in the rear to be much spacious. The food provided to passengers seems to be excellent according to most reviews by the customers of the airline. Many customers seem to complain about service delivery by the staff members of this airline. The service delivery is not that appealing to most passengers in business class. In addition, the space allocated to seats is a bit small (PRLog, 2010). Furthermore, the suite is often noisy as noted by the review of one passenger, this seem to emanate from economy class passengers who sometimes share the lounge with business class suite. The isle are also said to be narrow and hence passengers sitting next to the isle are disturbed throughout the flight by either flight attendants or other passengers who move up and down. The washrooms in this class are also inadequate hence people have difficulties in relieving themselves due to availability of only two washroom one of which is used as a changing room (Etihad Airways, 2010). The online booking system for the business class seem also to have many problems and staff members seem not to taker note of customers with special needs such as those injured or physically handicapped. As one reviewer notes, he had a plastered leg but found it had to convince the staff to allocate him a special seat even after being assured during online booking that he will be attended to (SKYTRAX, 2010). The staff is treated preferentially at the expense of the passengers from some reviews. The first class which is also known as the diamond zone is viewed by most passengers to be one of the best since it offers great privacy and direct access to isles (AsiaTravelTips.com, 2010). The suite also has a coatroom, an integrated personal mirror, a fold and swivel meal table, a desk lamp, a reading light and a magazine rack, which add to comfort of passengers travelling in this suite (Luffman et al., 56). The lumbar support, headrest and built in massage facility available in this suite makes the suite to be one of the best among the airlines bound to Asian region according to most reviewers of the firm (Haberberg & Rieple 78). Furthermore, most passengers seem to be satisfied with the entertainment facilities provided in this suite which include a 23” personal LCD. The staff attending passengers travelling in the first class seems to doing a fantastic job since most customer reviews seem to be satisfied with their services. The ‘position’ Etihad Airways could have in the First Class and Business Class product segments of its Asian market Even though Etihad airline has one of the best First class and Business Class product segments are one of the best in the world, the airline will have to make some radical restructuring in the airlines bound to Asian market (AsiaTravelTips.com, 2010). The Business class will have to be revamped to address issues related to crowded lounges, noise and service delivery by flight attendants. The firm will also have to address the issue of narrow isles, which seem to be a nuisance to passengers sitting next to these isles (Etihad Airways, 2010). The however will have to continue upgrading its best strengths by continuously reviewing entertainment facilities to address changing entertainment needs of the firms. By making these changes, Etihad will be the best airline plighting the Asian market. It will outweigh the likes of emirates in this sector after instituting its own lounges and improving service delivery and online booking facilities (Etihad Airways, 2010). Non of its competitors will be a great threat if this changes will be accompanied by cost cutting to ensure that fares charged to passengers travelling in the Business Class and First Class enjoy competitive pricing (Evans, Campbell & Stonehouse 17). Conclusion Etihad airway is one of the world’s leading airlines. It is owned by United Arab Emirates. It was founded by Royal decree in 2003. It is the fastest growing airline. The airline received world’s leading airline award in 2009. The airline provides its customers with superior travel experience both on the ground and in-flight. The airline has upgraded its aircraft in the economy class and business class cabins. The firm has introduced a new first class suite that will be available by the end of 2010 on all three-class aircraft. The main competitors of Etihad airways in the First class and business class in Asian market include Air India, emirates airline, Gulf air, Kuwait airways, Qatar airways and Saudi Arabia airline. Through the introduction of these new suites, which address the different shortcomings that have characterized the previous suites, the airline is expected to be a leader in the Asian market. Works Cited AsiaTravelTips.com. Etihad Wins World’s Best First Class, Best First Class Seat, and Best First Class Onboard Catering. 21 November 2010. Available at http://www.asiatraveltips.com/news10/215-BestFirstClass.shtml Delfmann, Werner. Strategic management in the aviation industry. London: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2005. Etihad Airways. Archived News. 22 November 2010. Available at https://www.etihadairways.com/sites/Etihad/global/en/aboutetihad/mediacenter/newslisting/newsdetails/Pages/World%27s-Best-First-Class-Skytrax-May-10.aspx?fromNewsListing=false Evans Nigel, Campbell David & Stonehouse George. Strategic management for travel and tourism. London: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2003. Haberberg Adrian & Rieple Alison. Strategic Management: Theory and Application. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. Katsioloudes, Marios. Strategic management: global cultural perspectives for profit and non-profit organizations, 2nd Ed. London: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2006. Luffman George, Lea Edward, Sanderson Stuart & Kenny Brian. Strategic management: an analytical introduction, 3rd Ed. New York: Wiley-Blackwell, 1996. PRLog. New market research report: United Arab Emirates Tourism Report Q4 2010. 31 October 2010. 22 November 2010. Available at http://www.prlog.org/11036122-new-market-research-report-united-arab-emirates-tourism-report-q4-2010.html Saudi Arabian Airlines. Travel. 22 November 2010. Available at http://www.saudiairlines.com SKYTRAX (World Airline Awards). Etihad Airways wins award for World’s Best First Class Airline Sea at World Airline Awards. 22 November 2010. Available at http://www.worldairlineawards.com/Awards-2010/fseats.htm Read More