[5] The airline operates more than 1,000 flights per week to over 120 passenger and cargo destinations in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia, and North America, with a fleet of 97 Airbus and Boeing aircraft as of January 2024.

Sheikh Ahmed bin Saif Al Nahyan founded the airline and utilized AED500 million of start-up capital.

[9] Etihad reported its first full-year net profit in 2011, of US$14 million, in line with the strategic plan announced by CEO James Hogan in 2006.

[10] In December 2011, Etihad announced it had acquired a 29.21% stake in Air Berlin,[11] Europe's sixth-largest airline, and Hogan was appointed Vice Chairman.

[14] On 1 August 2013, the president of the company, Hogan, signed a deal with Aleksandar Vučić, the First Deputy Prime Minister of Serbia, in Belgrade, granting Etihad a 49% stake in the Serbian national carrier Jat Airways.

[18] On 1 August 2014, Etihad agreed to acquire a 49% stake in the Italian flag carrier Alitalia for an estimated €560 million.

[23] In May 2016, the management structure was reshuffled, as Hogan became CEO of the airline's parent company, Etihad Aviation Group.

[24] In December 2016 Handelsblatt Global reported that Hogan was expected to be dismissed after a "failed spree of acquisitions in Europe.

[31] As an interim measure, the board appointed Ray Gammell as CEO (previously Chief People and Performance Officer) while searching for a permanent replacement.

[33] On 2 July 2017, the United States Department of Homeland Security lifted the electronics ban on Etihad Airways after the airline enhanced its passenger screening processes.

[37] On 13 May 2023, the Serbian Government announced it had finished acquiring 100% equity in Air Serbia, after several years of buying back stakes from Etihad.

The airline also confirmed that it had no plans to ditch its Airbus A380 fleet into early retirement, unlike Air France, despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

In October 2022 Etihad Airways was transferred ownership over to Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ.

In 2023, Etihad redeployed four of their 10 jumbo jets onto their London Heathrow service, with later decisions that an additional A380 would return to the fleet.

The airline later announced the redeployment of their A380 to their New York JFK route in April 2024 as well as to Paris Charles de Gaulle from November 2024[48] as well as Singapore Changi from February 2025.

[53] Etihad is governed by a board of directors chaired by Mohamed Mubarak Al Mazrouei and operates in terms of its founding legislation and the Articles of Association of the company.

[54] The airline was led previously by James Hogan (formerly CEO of Gulf Air) who was appointed as president and chief executive officer from 10 September 2006 until January 2018.

The carrier refreshed its brand image in June 2012 dropping the "Crystal" part, with full Etihad Cargo titles now applied billboard-style in line with the airline's current corporate design.

In January 2018, Etihad announced it would retire and either sell or lease out its five relatively new Airbus A330-200F freighters due to a change in strategy and reduction of freight capacity.

[87] As of June 2023, Etihad serves 81 passenger and cargo destinations across Africa, Europe, North America, Asia and Australia from its hub at Zayed International Airport.

[89][90] As 2021 began, the airline suspended its flights to South Africa as a part of its ongoing review of network performance.

[92] Later in June 2023, the airline announced expansions of some routes such as expanding the frequency of flights to Rome from Abu Dhabi from seven to eleven times per week.

[93] On 25 November 2024, Etihad made a public announcement of the 10 new destinations of the national airline of UAE as part of their rapid expansion program.

The destinations are Algiers, Atlanta, Chiang Mai, Hanoi, Hong Kong, Krabi, Medan, Phnom Penh, Taipei and Tunis.

[118] The former livery features a UAE flag and the national falcon emblem on the vertical stabilizer and a golden Etihad logo on the windows.

[119] With the introduction of the Airbus A380 and Boeing 787, new cabins were introduced, their names being: The Residence (A380 only), the First Apartments (A380 only), First Suite (787-9 only), Business Studio and Economy Smart seat.

[126] On 28 April 2019, Etihad announced that it would remove seat-back screens in the economy section of 23 of its narrow-body Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft, used for flights of up to five hours.

[127] Etihad signed a 10-year agreement with Panasonic Avionics Corporation in 2011 for the provision of in-flight entertainment including broadband internet and live TV.

It offers a discount web shop for members and multiple benefits such as extra baggage and priority check-in for frequent fliers.

[131] Similar partnership exists for the Scandinavian Airlines loyalty program Eurobonus, where members can earn and spend bonus points on selected flights.