24 June 2019: Etihad Airways has selected SITAONAIR's EFB Weather Awareness Solution (eWAS), across more than 100 aircraft to increase the safety of the flight.
Before its launch, eWAS solution was trialled by a chosen group of Etihad pilots with extremely positive results. Over 18,000 pilots from various carriers have now trialled the solution globally.
eWAS has been developed in partnership with GTD, a user-friendly, cloud-hosted application that improves situational awareness and minimizes many of the costs associated with weather avoidance.
It permits pilots to study areas of turbulence along their flightpaths which would prepare them for another route well in advance.
"The safety of our passengers and crew is our highest priority," said Captain Guy Farnfield, Etihad's Head of Flight Operations Support. "The advanced communications connectivity on modern aircraft significantly improves the quality of data available to pilots, and the real-time information provided by SITAONAIR enhances their ability to anticipate, safely navigate or avoid major weather fronts. This system is delivering safety and efficiency benefits to Etihad, and improving the experience of our guests and our crews."
Stephan Egli, Commercial VP Europe, Middle East & Africa, SITAONAIR said, "Globally we have seen a huge shift towards bringing greater value and efficiency to airline operations in recent years. Airlines such as Etihad want to unlock their connected aircraft value and, most importantly, improve safety. As an aviation industry game-changer in the field of intelligent weather avoidance technology, eWAS is the perfect tool to enable Etihad's ambitions. eWAS is used in production by over 10,000 pilots at multiple airlines. We believe that by embracing the age of digital transformation, we will support Etihad's focus on bolstering safety in the skies, as well as operational efficiency."