Dubai: Emirates will deploy an Airbus A380 on the Dubai-Brisbane services later this year, while adding a second daily service to Perth – via a Boeing 777-300ER – from December. These come as part of a major capacity upgrade on the carrier’s services to Australia.
“It’s a demonstration of the importance of both gateways (Brisbane and Perth) for tourism and trade, and Emirates’ commitment to ensure convenient schedules and comfortable connections to and through Dubai,” said Barry Brown, Divisional Vice-President Australasia at the Dubai headquartered airline.
“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.”
Services to Brisbane
From October 1, Emirates’ second A380 flight EK430 to Brisbane will depart Dubai at 02:30 hours, arriving in Brisbane at 22:20. The return flight EK431 will depart at 01:55 hours, arriving in Dubai at 10:05. All times are local.
And the one to Perth
The additional flight to Perth will start December 1. It will depart from Dubai at 09:15 hours and arrive in Perth at 00:05 the following day. The return flight will depart from Perth at 06:00 hours and arrive in Dubai at 13:10.
Emirates currently has 63 weekly flights to Australia, operated by a mix of A380 and Boeing 777 aircraft. It’s been handling some 56,000 passengers per week to and from major cities in Australia. (The airline recently announced doubling its Premium Economy capacity on flights to Melbourne from February 1, adding to the two daily four-class A380 services to Sydney.)
Beginning in June last, Emirates’ second Brisbane service on a Boeing 777-300ER was made ‘possible by the Queensland government’s Attracting Aviation Investment Fund’.
“The additional flight was estimated to bring in an additional 129,210 seats, including an estimated 38,610 visitors to Queensland and generate overnight visitor expenditure of $75 million a year,” the airline said in a statement.
“With thanks to this fund, Emirates is now able to upgauge this service to the A380 and bring further travel and business opportunities to Queensland.”
