Emirates will ramp up its operations in Australia by upgrading its second daily flight EK430/431 between Dubai and Brisbane to an A380 starting from 1 October this year.
The airline will also add a second daily service between Dubai and Perth operated by a Boeing 777-300ER starting from 1 December.
Emirates said in a statement that recent forward booking data shows “strong demand in long haul bookings” from the UK to Australia, including Brisbane and Perth.
From 1 October, Emirates’ second A380 flight EK430 to Brisbane will depart Dubai at 0230hrs, arriving in Brisbane at 2220hrs.
Emirates’ return flight EK431 will depart Brisbane at 0155hrs, arriving in Dubai at 1005hrs. All times are local.
The additional flight to Perth will be operated by an Emirates Boeing 777-300ER. Starting from 1 December, Emirates flight EK424 will depart from Dubai at 0915hrs and arrive in Perth at 0005hrs the following day.
Emirates’ return flight EK425 will depart from Perth at 0600hrs and arrive in Dubai at 1310hrs. All times are local.
Based on Emirates’ forward booking data for 2024, the airline has also reported an uptick in Premium Economy bookings on long-haul flights to Australia.
Premium Economy outbound bookings from the UK to Australia are up 18%, while inbound bookings from Australia to the UK are up 29%.
Emirates’ four-class A380 currently serves 12 destinations worldwide, including Sydney and Melbourne.
Barry Brown, Divisional Vice President Australasia at Emirates, commented: “We’re pleased to offer more choices and opportunities for Australians travelling from Brisbane and Perth through the ramp-up of our operations.
“Whether it’s the advantage of seamless afternoon connections from Dubai to a wealth of destinations across Europe on the second Perth flight, or a full A380 experience to and from Brisbane to close to 50 cities served by our flagship, we’re creating access to diverse opportunities for business, leisure, culture, and more.
“The ramp-up is also a testament to our commitment to enhancing global connectivity to our Australian gateways and supporting tourism and trade growth opportunities.”
Gert-Jan de Graaff, Brisbane Airport Chief Executive Officer, commented: “The A380 will allow up to 100,000 extra passengers per year to travel between Queensland and Europe, which is Brisbane’s second busiest international destination.
“Now in its 21st year of serving Brisbane, Emirates is our number one mover of people to and from Europe.
“More than two-thirds of all overnight Emirates flights have been over Moreton Bay during the period from July to December 2023.
“We congratulate Emirates on that performance and look forward to continued collaboration across all airlines.”
Through upgraded A380 operations to Brisbane and the resumption of Emirates’ second service to Perth, the airline will increase weekly capacity to Australia by an additional 6,900 seats.
This is in addition to facilitating convenient air connectivity for the shipment of exports and imports, further supporting Australian businesses and specialised industries.
Emirates currently serves Australia with 63 weekly flights to Brisbane, Perth, Sydney and Melbourne, operated by a mix of A380 and Boeing 777 aircraft transporting 56,000 passengers per week.
The airline has recently announced doubling its Premium Economy offering on flights to Melbourne starting from 1 February, adding to the two daily four-class A380 services to Sydney.
Tickets can be purchased at www.emirates.com.
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