Etihad's volcanic follow-up

Well an ash cloud follow-up really from Abu Dhabi's Etihad Airways, and rather a neat marketing touch at that.

The carrier took full page ads in the Financial Times yesterday with the headline: Clear Skies Ahead, and a personal message from CEO James Hogan updating its "guests" on the current traffic situation at the carrier.

"Thankfully the majority of our flight operations and schedules have returned to normal, and most of our stranded guests have reached their destinations. I would like to personally thank all of our guests for their patience and understanding during this crisis, and while we clear the backlog," said his letter.

The carrier says it will recover quickly from the disruption.

Such a smart marketing move is no real surprise from the 2008 winner in the Marketing category of our very own Airline Strategy Awards!