Abu Dhabi, Dec 11 (IANS/WAM) The UAE's national carrier Etihad Airways was Friday night set to commence a non-stop flight to Seoul, making it its first ever service to South Korea.

Seoul becomes Etihad's 65th destination on the network in just seven years of operations, the airline said.

The inaugural flight, EY876, was scheduled to depart Abu Dhabi at 10.45 p.m., arriving at Seoul's Incheon Airport at 12.05 p.m. Dec 11.

Etihad will operate a daily A330-200 three-class service, offering 2,800 seats each week on the route.

The new services will operate under an Etihad Airways (EY) and Asiana (OZ) flight code, following the codeshare agreement signed between the two airlines in October.

Etihad Airways chief executive officer, James Hogan, said: "We are delighted to commence services to South Korea, which has been a target destination for us for some time.

"There is a strong relationship between South Korea and the UAE, built over a 40-year history of bilateral trade relationships between the countries.

"We are confident this new route will be a success for both our passenger and cargo operations, and we look forward to facilitating business and leisure traffic between the two countries."