Dubai flights: Emirates to expand A380 service to 27 cities

Dubai - Emirates is set to become the first-ever A380 operation in Turkey from October 1.

In line with the continued easing of travel restrictions around the globe, Emirates has announced that its flagship A380 aircraft will soon be deployed to an expanded list of destinations starting in October and November. By the end of November, the number of cities that the aircraft will serve will be scaled up to 27, representing a more than 65 per cent increase from its current 16.

The Emirates A380 is popular among travellers for its spacious and comfortable cabins. The airline is gradually and responsibly deploying its popular aircraft in sync with passenger demand as the travel industry continues on its path to recovery.

With the addition of 11 routes to the A380 network by November, as well as extra frequencies on the most popular ones already being served by the aircraft, Emirates is poised to offer close to 165,000 additional A380 seats to customers.

Over the next six weeks Emirates will re-instate its signature A380 services to popular leisure and business destinations such as Amsterdam, Barcelona, Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Johannesburg, Madrid, Milan, Riyadh (subject to government approvals), Sao Paulo and Zurich, a statement issued on Monday said.

Emirates will also introduce a new route to its A380 network that was previously not served by the world's largest commercial aircraft. The flagship aircraft's services to Istanbul are scheduled to launch on October 1, set to become the first-ever A380 operation in Turkey.

118 A380s by year-end

As the world's largest operator of the A380 aircraft, the airline's total fleet of A380s will reach 118 by year-end, including six aircraft equipped with Premium Economy seats in a 4-class configuration.

The airline currently flies to over 120 cities, representing 90 per cent of its pre-pandemic network, and plans to restore 70 per cent of its capacity by the end of the year are on track with the return to service of more than 50 A380 aircraft.

Emirates is also scaling up operations across its global network to meet the surge in customer demand to Dubai as well as other destinations that allow quarantine-free entry for specific nationalities and vaccination status.

In December 2020, Emirates introduced its first A380 aircraft in 4-class configuration, featuring Premium Economy. By November this year, the airline will have six aircraft equipped with the seat offering and new-look cabin interiors.

• Dubai