Emirates Signs For 10 Boeing 747-8 Freighters
Emirates, one of the world's fastest growing international airlines, has
signed a Heads of Agreement for 10 freighter versions of Boeing's new 747-8
aircraft,to be powered by General Electric's GEnx jet engines, in a deal worth US$3.3 billion.
The Heads of Agreement was completed at the Farnborough Airshow in
the United Kingdom by HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman and
Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group, and Alan Mulally, Boeing
Commercial Airplanes President and Chief Executive Officer.
The engine component of this deal is valued at more than US$600 million,
and Sheikh Ahmed and GE Aviation's President and CEO Scott Donnelly,
also signed a Letter of Intent today for 45 GEnx jet engines to power
the new aircraft ordered.
The 10 747-8F aircraft, scheduled for delivery from 2010, will support
Emirates' long-term growth plans by providing additional capacity and
operational flexibility for its air cargo services. Emirates currently
operates nine wide-bodied Boeing 747Fs and Airbus A310Fs, and also has
eight Boeing 777Fs on its order books.
Emirates offers more than 70 tonnes of belly-hold cargo capacity daily from
New Zealand, with its four services each day to Dubai and beyond, via Australia.
Sheikh Ahmed said: "Worldwide air cargo traffic is projected to grow by
over six percent annually for the next two decades, tripling over
current traffic levels.
"The 747-8 freighters that we are ordering today will put Emirates in a
strong position to tap into the growth of cargo traffic and reinforce
Dubai's standing as a growing international hub for air cargo and
logistics. This acquisition is an important building block in our
long-term growth plans, and will help Emirates SkyCargo reinforce its
position in the top league of leading cargo carriers."
The range and economics of the new 747-8Fs will provide Emirates
SkyCargo with the flexibility to deploy the aircraft on a variety of
routes within a range of up to 4,475 nautical miles. From Dubai's
geo-centric location, this means the airline could potentially operate
non-stop air cargo services, flying with a full load, to the entire
African continent, Europe, Middle East and most of Asia.
"We are very pleased that Emirates has chosen the 747-8F to bring the
newest technology to its freighter fleet," Mulally said. "The new
747-8F has been designed to deliver the best economics of any freighter
aircraft. With the technology improvements brought from the 787
programme, including new-generation engines, the 747-8 Freighter will be
lighter and more fuel efficient while providing more revenue-earning
cargo space. This is great news for Emirates, and great news for the
747-8 programme."
The new 747-8Fs offer 16 percent more cargo volume and 15 percent lower
ton-mile costs than the classic 747-400F. Currently under development,
the new GEnx jet engines powering these aircraft have been designed for
greater engine durability, weight reduction and lower operating costs.
The GEnx also provides significantly better specific fuel consumption
and payload performance than its predecessor the CF6, and it is already
the best-selling engine for new wide-body aircraft.
Dubai-based Emirates is one of the world's most successful and
profitable international airlines. It currently operates a fleet of 94
wide-bodied aircraft to over 80 destinations around the globe. Over the
past decade, Emirates has been recording double-digit growth annually,
and it currently receives an average of one new aircraft per month.
With the implementation of this Heads of Agreement for the 747-8Fs,
Emirates will have more than 100 wide-bodied passenger and freighter jets,
worth approximately US$ 30 billion, pending delivery.
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