Abu Dhabi's Etihad Airways to drop San Francisco route from October

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[June 14, 2017]  ABU DHABI/DUBAI (Reuters) - Abu Dhabi's Etihad Airways said on Wednesday it is suspending flights to San Francisco in the United States from October after falling passenger demand curbed the route's profitability.

An Etihad Airways Boeing 777-3FX aircraft takes off at the Charles de Gaulle airport in Roissy, France, August 9, 2016. REUTERS/Jacky Naegelen/File Photo

The flight, launched in November 2014, was already reduced from a daily service to three times a week earlier this year.

The suspension is from October 29 and passengers booked to travel after then will be rebooked with other carriers, Etihad said in an emailed statement.

"Etihad Airways remains strongly committed to its other U.S. services, which are performing at, or above, commercial targets," Etihad said.

The Abu Dhabi carrier flies to five other U.S. destinations including New York and Washington DC.

The announcement comes amid a strategy review at the Abu Dhabi-based carrier and ahead of the formal departure of its Chief Executive James Hogan and Chief Financial Officer James Rigney next month whose positions were both replaced with interim appointees in May.

Rival Dubai-based Emirates in April announced it was reducing flights to five U.S. cities, blaming a drop in demand on new travel restrictions imposed by the President Donald Trump's administration.

(Reporting by Stanley Carvalho and Alexander Cornwell, editing by Louise Heavens)

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