Emirates to Launch Third Service From Birmingham
Emirates, a global connector of people, places and economies, has announced a third daily service from Birmingham Airport to Dubai, becoming the first airline to offer a direct First Class service to the region.
Commencing Saturday 1st August 2015, Emirates flight EK41 will depart Dubai International Airport at 0235hrs and arrive in Birmingham at 0705hrs. The outbound flight EK42 will depart Birmingham Airport at 0910hrs and arrive in Dubai at 1910hrs, well-timed for a good night’s sleep and a fresh start in the city the following day. The additional service adds seven more inbound flights a week to Dubai for Birmingham, increasing passenger and cargo capacity on the route by 50 percent.
“Dubai has proven to be an increasingly strong market for leisure and business travellers residing in the West Midlands. The additional daily flight to Dubai from Birmingham will give our customers greater flexibility in their travel plans, departing from their local airport. Customers can experience the ease of flying to Dubai and connect seamlessly to other flights on Emirates’ extensive network such as East Asia,” said Hubert Frach, Emirates’ Divisional Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations West. “As part of our continued commitment, we’re excited to become the first airline offering First Class to the region.
Emirates started flying from Birmingham to Dubai in December 2000 when it launched the route with a daily non-stop service, operated by a 278-seat Airbus A330. Over its 14 year history at Birmingham, Emirates has carried 4.9 million passengers. Passengers flying from the Midlands can travel to Dubai and beyond, to an ever expanding global network. Popular destinations from Birmingham include Australia, India, Singapore, Bangkok and Hong Kong.
Paul Kehoe, Birmingham Airport CEO, said: “Emirates’ decision to add a third daily service to Dubai and beyond from Birmingham Airport clearly shows the strong demand that exists in the city and the region for passengers who want connectivity to Dubai, Asia and Australia.
“Since the carrier began flying from Birmingham 14 years ago, passengers have been telling us how much they value the route and the excellent service they receive, so today’s announcement is great news for everyone. In addition to increased frequency, this new third service will operate on a three class Boeing 777-300ER, meaning passengers will be able to experience their excellent first class suites, the first time it has been offered on this route.”
The seven new flights a week will be operated with a Boeing 777-300ER aircraft in a three class configuration. The added capacity provides 56 First Class, 294 Business Class and 2170 Economy Class seats each way per week on the route, as well as 23 tonnes of additional capacity for cargo per flight.
All three cabins are equipped with Emirates’ award-winning ice entertainment system with more than 2,000 channels of on-demand entertainment to choose from, including movies, television programmes, games, audio books and music from across the world.
As with all Emirates flights, passengers on the new Birmingham-Dubai services will enjoy the extra generous Emirates baggage allowance of 30kg in Economy Class, 40kg in Business Class and 50kg in First Class. The additional services also provide more opportunities for members of Skywards, the award-winning frequent flyer programme of Emirates Airline, to earn Skywards Miles on their travel.