Etihad slashes airfares to Europe AIRFARES to Europe have hit another low with Virgin Australia partner Etihad offering return economy tickets from $1209 as part of a 10th anniversary sale. The offer is valid for flights out of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane and good for travel in October and November, with Melbourne-Istanbul leading the way with the cheapest ticket. Other deals include Melbourne-Amsterdam ($1245), Melbourne-Geneva (from $1218), Sydney-Istanbul (from $1224), Sydney-Paris (from $1293), Brisbane-Milan (from $1277) and Brisbane-Brussels (from $1285). The airline is also offering double miles for members of its loyalty program. The fares are comparable with low-price Chinese carriers and come as airlines have released attractive early-bird fares for travel to Europe next year as they battle for customers on the highly competitive market. Chinese carriers have been offering fares as low as $1294 return economy ticket to Amsterdam for travel between February 1 and June 30. But even full-service carriers such as Singapore Airlines, Qantas and Emirates are putting their best foot forward fare-wise with tax-inclusive economy class return deals to Europe starting in the mid $1400s. Some are also matching an innovation by Singapore Airlines to do away with seasonal restrictions and make the fares available from the beginning of March to the end of October. Separately, Virgin Australia today announced it would introduce direct Brisbane-Cloncurry flights from November 27.