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He has more than 40 years of experience in civil aviation in 30 countries worldwide and first joined Etihad in 2006 when he was responsible for setting up the airline's commercial operations in the Philippines and Indonesia.
Prior to joining Etihad Mr Rhodes held a number of posts with British Airways, including10 years in Russia in the 1990s.
Geert Boven, Etihad Airways' executive vice president sales and services, said:
"Geoff brings a wealth of experience to the role which I'm confident will contribute to Etihad's future success in Russia. He understands the challenges faced by the aviation industry and the importance of the Russian market in the global growth plans of Etihad Airways."
To mark the start of the first flights Etihad has unveiled great value introductory fares.
Geoff Rhodes said: "It is a privilege to join Etihad Airways at this exciting time when the airline is set to start its first operations into the fast-growing Russian market. Commercial links between the UAE and Russia are vibrant and I'm looking forward to leading the airline team in Moscow to develop Etihad's contribution."
Spanning no less than 10 time zones, Russia is the largest country in the world in terms of surface area. Russia's economic power lies in its huge natural resources, particularly oil and gas which has brought rapid economic growth to the country.
Moscow is the country's political, economic, financial, educational and transportation centre. The city is a major economic centre and is home to the largest number of billionaires in the world. Many multi-national corporations have branches and offices in the city.
The Russian capital will be Etihad's eleventh destination in its flight network in Europe which already includes services to Brussels, Dublin, Frankfurt, Geneva, London, Manchester, Milan, Minsk, Munich and Paris.
Flight EY069 will depart Abu Dhabi on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays at 9.40am and arrive at Moscow's Domodedovo airport at 2.05pm the same day.
Return flight EY068 will depart Moscow on the same days at 2.55pm, arriving in Abu Dhabi at 9.05pm.
Etihad will operate to Moscow on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays a two-class Airbus A319 configured to carry 104 passengers with 20 seats in business class and 84 in economy class.
On Thursdays, the service will be operated by an Airbus A320 configured to carry 140 passengers with 20 seats in business and 120 in economy.
Eman Hassan
