Emirates orders 36 additional Airbus A380 aircraft worth US$16 billion. HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group signed the agreement with John Leahy, Chief Operating Officer Customers, Airbus Commercial Aircraft at Emirates’ Headquarters in Dubai.
New flight schedule offers Turkish passengers more seamless Far East/Australasia connections.
SINGAPORE – Emirates announced the resumption of flights between Dubai and Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen Airport, starting 8th June 2018. The resumption of services on the route will allow customers two destination options when travelling Emirates to Istanbul.
The flight will be operated five times a week by an Emirates Boeing 777-300ER in a three class cabin configuration, with eight private suites in First Class, 42 lie-flat seats in Business Class and 310 spacious seats in Economy Class. Together with Emirates’ other service to Istanbul, the airline will offer 16 flights and over 6500 seats per week, catering to both tourism and business traffic.
The aircraft allows for an increase in cargo capacity to Istanbul, with a weekly total of 100 tonnes and makes Emirates the only airline operating a scheduled service with a wide-body aircraft at Sabiha Gokcen Airport.
Seamless connectivity
Emirates flight EK119 will depart Dubai at 1000hrs and arrive in Istanbul at 1345hrs. The return flight EK120 will leave Istanbul at 1535 hrs, and arrive in Dubai at 2100 hrs. The new timing allows customers from Istanbul to seamlessly connect to Emirates’ flights at Dubai International Airport to popular destinations like Bangkok, Shanghai, Seoul, and cities across Australia.
The flight timing also means travellers from key inbound markets such as China, Korea, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait can enjoy shorter connection times in Dubai when continuing onwards to Istanbul.
“We’ve seen continued growth in travel demand to and from Istanbul over the past year and are therefore pleased to be able to offer passengers travelling with Emirates the choice of two destinations in the city. With flights to these two points in Istanbul, along with our extended partnership with flydubai, we’re able to offer customers more scheduled flight options and greater connectivity to Dubai and beyond,” said Hubert Frach, Emirates Divisional Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, West.
Travellers can access Istanbul City with ease from Sabiha Gocken, and from surrounding provinces to the airport. The development of the Osman Gazi Bridge offers residents from north and west provinces a commute time of under an hour to Sabiha Gocken Airport, and those looking to travel to and from Istanbul’s European side can use the scheduled bus service between the Sabiha Gokcen and Taksim Square, an approximate 45 minutes journey.
Emirates orders 36 A380s worth US$ 16 billion
Emirates also announced a US$ 16 billion (AED 58.7 billion) deal for 36 additional Airbus A380 aircraft, with 20 firm orders and 16 options. Emirates’ A380 fleet operates both GE and Rolls-Royce engines, and the airline is evaluating engine options for its latest A380 order.
The additional Airbus A380s will be delivered to Emirates from 2020 onwards. Together with the airline’s 101-strong A380 fleet and its current order backlog for 41 aircraft, this new order brings Emirates’ commitment to the A380 programme to 178 aircraft, worth over US$ 60 billion.
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, said: “Emirates truly represents Dubai’s spirit of growth, innovation and resilience. It also epitomises the city’s increasing role in connecting the world in terms of people, capital and information flows. This deal reflects Emirates’ confidence in shaping the future, and its commitment to advancing Dubai’s vision to grow further as a world-class destination and aviation hub.”
His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group signed the memorandum of understanding (MOU) today with John Leahy, Chief Operating Officer Customers, Airbus Commercial Aircraft at the airline’s headquarters in Dubai.
Sheikh Ahmed said: “We’ve made no secret of the fact that the A380 has been a success for Emirates. Our customers love it, and we’ve been able to deploy it on different missions across our network, giving us flexibility in terms of range and passenger mix."
He added: “Some of the new A380s we’ve just ordered will be used as fleet replacements. This order will provide stability to the A380 production line. We will continue to work closely with Airbus to further enhance the aircraft and onboard product, so as to offer our passengers the best possible experience. The beauty of this aircraft is that the technology and real estate on board gives us plenty of room to do something different with the interiors.”
"I would like to thank Emirates, Sheikh Ahmed, Tim Clark and Adel Al-Redha for their continued support of the A380,” said John Leahy, Chief Operating Officer Customers, Airbus Commercial Aircraft. “This aircraft has contributed enormously to Emirates' growth and success since 2008 and we are delighted that it will continue to do so. This new order underscores Airbus’ commitment to produce the A380 at least for another ten years. I’m personally convinced more orders will follow Emirates’ example and that this great aircraft will be built well into the 2030s.”
Emirates’ partnership with Airbus spans decades. Emirates is by far the largest Airbus A380 operator on the planet with 101 A380s in service today.
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She holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication & Mass Media from Panteion University of Political & Social Studies of Athens and she has been editor and editor-in-chief in various economic magazines and newspapers.
