Emirates will restore A380 service to all prior US destinations, CEO says
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Emirates will bring the Airbus A380 back onto all U.S. routes that were previously serviced by the double-decker jet, CEO Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum said on Monday.
Speaking at a media roundtable at the Dubai Airshow on Monday, Al-Maktoum said that the airline was working to restore its full A380 fleet after grounding it during the height of the pandemic. The aircraft will be added back into the schedule as they become available, with markets with the most demand continuing to see the Airbus jumbojet restored soonest as a way to boost capacity.
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“With the -380 program today, we have 47 of them,” Al-Maktoum said. “Our operation, looking toward the end of the year, we’ll have over 60,” he said, referring to planes being pulled back out of storage. Emirates has a fleet of about 120 of the aircraft type, which it grounded during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
As Emirates has returned the planes to service, there have been questions about whether the fleet type would return to its former glory serving as the effective flagship for the airline.
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Emirates currently serves Boston Logan Airport (BOS), for instance, using a Boeing 777-300ER, where previously it flew the A380. Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) currently has A380 service, but Emirates will downgauge the route to a 777 starting in December. The airline plans to reintroduce the A380 to Dulles in April, 2022, according to data provided by Cirium.
“It all depends on the traffic,” or demand, Al-Maktoum said. “We saw an excellent summer to the U.S. and our traffic today is good.”
Featured photo by Dinendra Haria/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
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