Etihad Airways' newest ploy for the business traveller is the upscale Etihad Regional airline.

The Swiss-based operation will use its fleet of ten nimble 50-seat Saab 2000 turbo-prop aircraft to lace a new network map across Europe, offering passengers direct connections to dozens of major cities as well as tapping into a half-dozen cities served by Etihad (including Amsterdam, Paris, Düsseldorf and later this year Rome and Zurich) plus the hubs of siblings airberlin and Air Serbia.

Those connections plus codesharing with Etihad will see well-heeled flyers whisked between Etihad's major European services and the new Etihad Regional network through to Belgrade, Bordeaux, Cambridge, London City, Lyon, Marseille, Stuttgart, Toulouse, Turin and Zagreb, among others.

Etihad Regional is a rebranding of Switzerland's regional carrier Darwin Airline, in which Etihad last year purchased a one-third stake.

The new brand comes with new crew uniforms...

... plus upgraded cabins for Darwin's fleet.

The Saab 2000s now boast all-leather seats.

Etihad Airways CEO James Hogan describes the launch of Etihad Regional as "a step-change" for his airline.

"We are creating a unique approach to network development for global airlines. European travellers will now be able to connect from a far, far wider range of European towns and cities on Etihad-branded aircraft, through Abu Dhabi to our destinations worldwide."

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