Abu Dhabi, Sep 1 (IANS/WAM): Air India will launch daily Mumbai-Abu Dhabi flights from Nov 1, it was announced here Wednesday.

The airline currently operates five weekly flights to Abu Dhabi. This frequency has been increased to daily flights, the Abu Dhabi Airports Company (ADAC) said.

The move is to meet the growing demand in flight services in the sector.

The Mumbai-Abu Dhabi route recorded a 17 percent increase in passenger traffic in the first half of 2010, compared with the corresponding period last year.

The additional services will raise Air India's total number of flights to Abu Dhabi to 14, connecting the UAE capital with both Mumbai and Delhi.

Air India will operate the high-tech A321 aircraft which will depart from Abu Dhabi at 2.40 a.m., and will arrive in Mumbai at 6.55 a.m. It will offer both business and economy class services, ADAC said.

Ahmed Al Haddabi, senior vice president of airports' operations at ADAC said: "We are delighted to see that our airline partners are keen to expand their services to meet our passengers' growing demand."

"At ADAC, we continuously support such initiatives, assisting us in offering our customers more choices and putting us a step forward towards our goal in becoming a world class airport."

Jagmit Singh, Air India manager in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, said: "The increase in frequency on the Mumbai-Abu Dhabi route reflects our confidence in Abu Dhabi market, which is progressing towards its impressive vision for 2030."