Etihad Airways' Chief Executive James Hogan said on Thursday that "no commercial airline in the history of aviation has ever achieved Etihad's rate of growth in such a short period of time" but revealed the airline still had ambitious expansion plans to fulfill.

Hogan, who recently passed his first anniversary at the Abu Dhabi airline, was the guest speaker at the prestigious European Aviation Club in Brussels. He addressed an audience of senior representatives from all sectors of European aviation including airlines, governments, manufacturers and journalists.

During the speech in the Belgian capital, Hogan discussed the growth of the aviation industry in the Middle East and the region's enormous diversity and potential. He also spoke of the opportunities the Middle East presents for global business and leisure, as well as the aviation sector in particular.

"The Arabian Gulf is now the fastest growing aviation hub in the world and to be invited to speak at the European Aviation Club is recognition of this growth and the impact the region is having on the world," he said.

Gulf airlines played a "central role in attracting the growing numbers of business and leisure travellers who visit the region every year", he added.

Hogan also noted that as the markets of Asia and the Far East continued to grow Etihad and the other regional airlines would carry greater numbers of travellers between the East and West.

"Etihad has grown at an incredible speed and with a real sense of purpose since it was formed in 2003. We have introduced a fleet of state-of-the-art aircraft and product, a flight network of 45 global destinations and a workforce of more than 4,500 staff around the world," he said.

"No commercial airline in the history of aviation has ever achieved that rate of growth. Now we are looking for further, measured growth in the future, as well as the development of our brand into the best in the world."