This month saw the commencement of Etihad Airways' luxury first class suites on its Airbus A340-600 service, which operates between Abu Dhabi and London Heathrow.

Customers who travel in the state-of-the- art private suite, get an extra-large leather seat, which can be extended to a fully-flat 80.5 inch bed, along with an extra large wood-finished table for dining.

Furthermore, each suite has a 23 inch wide-screen LCD screen, with in-flight entertainment offering over 600 hours of on-demand programmes.

The passengers also have a changing room with full length mirror, wash basin and leather fold-down seat in the cabin.

Via a statement, Chief executive James Hogan described the introduction of the new service as a significant milestone, since it is the first time Etihad offered customers private suites within the first class cabin.

"The new product will be featured on a second A340-600 that will join the Etihad fleet next month as well as a further five Airbus A330-300s that will be delivered over the next two years," he continued.

By December 2010, the airline also plans to retrofit nine Airbus A340 aircraft that are currently in service.