Etihad EY800 Abu Dhabi to Tokyo A380 late for 42 days running

Etihad's daily Airbus A380 service from Abu Dhabi to Tokyo Narita, flight EY800, has not arrived fully on time for 42 days, according to One Mile at a Time. The blog cites FlightStats data showing the flight is punctual only around 7% of the time, with an average delay of more than 90 minutes. Passengers flying to Tokyo, or connecting onward through Abu Dhabi, are affected.

What the data shows

EY800 is scheduled to leave Abu Dhabi at 10:10pm and reach Narita at 1:30pm the following day, both local times. The 5,035-mile flight is blocked at 10 hours 20 minutes. One Mile at a Time says actual flight times typically range from 8 hours 43 minutes to 10 hours 1 minute, so the scheduled block time looks reasonable.

The site reviewed a Flightradar24 record of 12 consecutive days, during which the aircraft landed between 1 hour 5 minutes and 2 hours 5 minutes after its scheduled arrival time. It notes this does not include long taxi times at Narita, so passengers' actual arrival at the gate would be later still. The usual pattern, it says, is for the aircraft to take off two or more hours after the scheduled departure. The last gate arrival that was fully on time was on 12 September, 42 days before the article was published.

The cause is unclear

The issue was first raised by a FlyerTalk member, and the author says he has been unable to explain it. He sets out several observations:

• The A380 used on the route reportedly arrives in Abu Dhabi hours before departure, so a late inbound aircraft does not seem to be the problem.
• Flights to Bali and Singapore leaving at around the same time consistently depart on time, which makes a general policy of waiting for connecting passengers seem less likely, unless it applies only to this route.
• The aircraft has a long turnaround at Narita, and the return flight, EY801, operates close to on time.
• Air traffic control delays seem unlikely to him, since other flights from the region to Japan run to schedule and use the same air corridors.

The author suspects the airline may be holding the aircraft for connecting passengers but says he cannot explain why that would apply only to this route. He says he has few contacts at Etihad management, and the article does not include any comment from the airline.

What this means for travellers

One Mile at a Time advises passengers on EY800 not to make firm plans for their arrival afternoon in Tokyo and to expect a delay of more than 90 minutes on average. Practical steps include:

• Allow extra time for any onward connection, transfer or pre-booked activity after landing at Narita, bearing in mind that gate arrival can be later than landing.
• Be cautious with tight onward bookings that depend on arriving at 1:30pm as scheduled.
• Check live flight status before leaving for the airport.

The return service, EY801, is reported to run close to schedule. Etihad has not explained the delays in the sources reviewed, and it is not known whether the schedule or operation will change.

Sources: One Mile at a Time