Etihad Airways has welcomed Noora Al Marri, its 1,000th Emirati member of staff, to the airline. Noora, who is 23 years old and from Abu Dhabi, recently joined the airline\'s graduate manager development program (GMDP). She was encouraged to join the UAE\'s national airline by her husband, an officer cadet from batch 19 of the cadet pilot program, who joined last year. Ray Gammell, Etihad Airways Chief People and Performance Officer, said: \"We are delighted to welcome Noora, the airline\'s 1000th Emirati employee, to the Etihad Airways family. \"Etihad Airways recognises the vital role of UAE nationals in the ongoing development and running of our business and we look forward to supporting Noora as she embarks on her career with Etihad Airways, the UAE\'s national airline.\" Etihad Airways now employs more than 1,000 UAE nationals across its seven divisions, with Emiratis comprising 21 per cent of the airline\'s core employee workforce.