The UAE flag carrier, Emirates (EK) Airlines, has announced the addition of five new Airbus A380s to its summer flights schedule in response to the rising customer demand as the COVID-19 Pandemic is no longer a global threat.
These A380s will be deployed to serve more routes, expanding the airline’s network and capacity.
Emirates Deploys 5 More A380s for Summer
The Dubai-based carrier is optimistic about a strong recovery in the upcoming summer season. It expects to see full occupancy rates on many flights across its global network of destinations.
Dubai’s global airline announced that it is incorporating 5 additional Airbus A380s into its summer flight plan to cater to more destinations, leveraging the sustained growth in customer demand following the Covid-19 outbreak.
Emirates’ Chief Commercial Officer, Adnan Kazim, confirmed that customer demand remains strong. Further, he predicts that 2023 will see a robust recovery that surpasses 2022 levels.
Speaking to Emirates News Agency (WAM) during the Arabian Travel Market (ATM 2023) event in Dubai, Kazim revealed that Emirates has a fleet of 85 A380s. Likewise, they expect that to increase to 95 during the summer peak season by the end of the next financial year in March. Further, the large wide-body airliner will operate flights to 43 destinations in the summer schedule.
Emirates Adding New Routes and A380s
In terms of weekly departures, Emirates operates over 3,080 flights per week. According to Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Chief Commercial Officer, this amounts to more than 440 flights per day across its global network.
He also mentioned that the airline is considering expanding capacity to North America and China. With more aircraft coming into service and delivering its first Airbus A350.
Kazim also stated that Emirates plans to launch new flights to London, Christchurch, Sydney, Melbourne, and Auckland. As well as San Francisco (July 15th), Singapore (June 1st), and Houston (June 15th).
He further said the airline is contributing to sustainability initiatives in the UAE, aligning its efforts to reduce its carbon footprint with the growth in passenger numbers.
Kazim mentioned that Emirates recently completed a demonstration flight using 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), supporting the global aviation industry’s initiative to increase the use of greener fuel and meet carbon emission targets. EK also recycled over 500,000 kg of plastic and glass waste from flights.
Emirates Fleet Update
President Sir Tim Clark said that to maintain and expand its network, Emirates currently operates around 265 aircraft that are flying, regardless of any delays in deliveries from manufacturers.
As of May, Emirates is operating 137 Boeing 777s and 86 A380s. In addition, the airline has 165 aircraft on order. Including 50 A350s and 115 777X, which will be delivered between 2024 and 2031.
Clark said that in case of any slowdowns in production, Emirates has a strategy of relying on its retrofitted fleet as a backup. He expects the first deliveries of the 777X to Emirates to be made between July and October 2025.
According to Emirates Airline President Sir Tim Clark, the delivery of A350-900s will take place between 2024 and the end of 2026 or early 2027, which will help the fleet grow.
He added that the growth of the fleet also depends on the delivery of streams and the 777-300ERs that will be kept and refurbished, some of which may be kept as spare aircraft.
Bottom Line
According to EK’s President, Sir Tim Clark, the airline’s load factors in May are currently at 80%. Which he described as “really good.” The carrier has been experiencing strong demand, particularly on flights between Dubai and the UK.
Mr Clark characterized the demand as “resilient.” Further, He stated that Emirates expects to establish more codeshare agreements. Similar to the ones it recently signed with United Airlines and Air Canada.
The 30th edition of the ATM in 2023 is considered the region’s largest annual exhibition for travel and trade. Subsequently, attracting over 35,000 attendees from 150 countries.
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