Emirates A380 comes full circle and heads to France

29th December 2009 - An Emirates A380 left Dubai this morning, bound for France and the home of its manufacturer, Airbus, as double-decker flights got underway to Paris. The French capital is the latest destination to be served by the airlines much admired super-jumbo - after Toronto, London Heathrow, Seoul, Bangkok, Sydney, Auckland, and Jeddah from 1st February. Salem Obaidalla, Emirates Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Europe & the Russian Federation, said: The superjumbo will gradually replace the morning 777 service out of Dubai, becoming daily from 17th January. The demand for Emirates services on this route has always been extremely high and it is fitting that one of our Airbus A380s is being deployed to serve France, the headquarters of Airbus, and from where the A380 story unfolded. For us, the A380 has come full circle and what a wonderful way this is to end 2009. Mr Obaidalla added: Our sales remain very strong in and out of Paris Charles de Gaulle and our 7th A380 will bring some of the much needed capacity to the route. We also expect the larger aircraft to further stimulate trade between the UAE and France. UAE-France bilateral trade is worth billions of US dollars each year. While French investment in the UAE has traditionally focused on oil and gas, free trade zones have attracted companies such as LOreal, Chanel and Schneider. Food, automotive parts, furniture and interior design products also make up part of the trade picture. France became part of the airlines European network in 1992. Nineteen weekly passengers flights into the country are made up of a double daily service to Paris and five flights into Nice, becoming daily this Friday. The 489-seat superjumbo will initially replace EK 073 on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. The flight leaves Dubai at 0800hrs and arrives in Paris at 1225hrs. The return flight, EK 074, leaves Charles De Gaulle at 1430hrs and gets into Dubai at 2359hrs. As before, the second flight of the day, EK 075, departs Dubai at 1500hrs and arrives in the French capital at 1930hrs. Heading back, EK 076 takes off from CDG at 2105hrs and lands in Dubai at 0635hrs the following day. The Emirates A380, much of it French built, has been the talk of the industry since its introduction to the airlines fleet in July 2008. For a giant of the skies, it is surprisingly quiet, has a vastly reduced noise footprint and uses the very latest fuel-efficient technology. Before premium passengers even board, they can enjoy the airlines dedicated luxury lounges in Paris and Dubais Terminal 3, the envy of the worlds airline community. Inside the peerless First Class cabin, passengers can freshen up in one of the Onboard Shower Spas before joining other premium passengers to talk business and travel in the Onboard Lounge. This outstanding facility is permanently staffed by highly trained cabin crew and fully equipped with complimentary beverages and canapés. It opens when the aircraft reaches cruising altitude and doesn’t close until descent. The A380 presents a completely different experience for Economy passengers too. More roomy cabins, more space between seats, and of course, the customary top-notch cuisine, along with the enthralling ice in-flight entertainment system. Emirates and Airbus Emirates is the largest A380 customer with seven double-deckers already in the fleet and a further 51 on order Emirates was the first airline to order the A380 and has ordered more than any other carrier Emirates represents 30 per cent of the total orders received by Airbus for the superjumbo Emirates now has 54 Airbus aircraft flying - A380s (7), 330-200s (29), 340-300s (8), and 340-500s (10) The airline has 122 Airbus aircraft on order, a combination of A350-900s, A350-1000s and A380s - worth more than USD 35 billion (AED 132 billion). Emirates A380 Overall length - 73 metres Height - 24.1 metres Wing span - 79.8 metres Fuselage diameter - 7.14 metres The A380 burns up to 20 per cent less fuel per seat than today’s next largest aircraft The Emirates A380 uses the Engine Alliance GP7200, which will save a further 500,000 litres of fuel per aircraft per year compared to other engine alternatives The A380 generates less than half the noise of a Boeing 747-400 on take off The UAE and France (Source: French Embassy, Abu Dhabi) The United Arab Emirates is Frances largest market in the Middle East The UAE makes up 25 percent of French exports to the Middle East 250 subsidiaries of French companies present in the UAE Tourism arrivals from France to Dubai grew by 27% in 2008 10,000 French settled in the Emirates.