Emirates A380 Auckland-Paris Now All the Way There and Back

3 January 2012

Emirates A380 Auckland-Paris Now All the Way There and Back

Travellers departing Auckland on an Emirates A380 will now be able to fly all the way to Paris and return seamlessly on the double-decker aircraft.

Emirates has doubled its A380 capacity to New York’s John F. Kennedy and Paris’ Charles De Gaulle airports with a twice daily A380 service from Dubai now operating into both cities.

The increase in A380 service will mean direct connections to Paris A380 flights at Dubai in each direction.

Emirates flies A380s twice daily from Auckland to Dubai – one via Sydney, the other via Melbourne – and there are also onward A380 connections to London, Manchester, Amsterdam, Munich and Rome.

Meanwhile Emirates has achieved another first with the inaugural departure yesterday of an A380 flight from the new and world's only dedicated and purpose-built A380 concourse at Dubai International Airport.

Part of the airport's Terminal 3 complex, Concourse A will become the "home of the Emirates A380", from where passengers will connect to more than 20 Emirates A380 destinations around the world. The departure of flight EK003 to London Heathrow marked the start of flights from four gates which opened at Concourse A. This also forms part of on-going operational trials and testing to ensure a smooth and seamless passenger experience before it officially opens and becomes fully operational during the first quarter this year.

"This is an historic and momentous occasion, marking another world first from Emirates. The new A380 hub is another example of Emirates being a leader in providing innovative products and services that give customers an unsurpassed travel experience," said His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of the Dubai Department of Civil Aviation, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group and Chairman of Dubai Airports.

“We are confident that our customers will find the new concourse to be a remarkable world class facility befitting of our flagship Emirates A380 aircraft." “I would also like to congratulate Dubai Airports on achieving this major milestone in the development of Concourse A."

With 528,000 m2 spread across eleven floors and the capacity to handle 15 million passengers a year, the concourse offers Emirates customers a seamless and unrivalled experience in terms of comfort, convenience and choice of facilities. From direct lounge boarding for First Class and Business Class customers to an expansive duty free shopping area, food courts, cafes and fine dining options, a Timeless Spa and the largest First Class and Business Class lounges in the world. The concourse also offers a dedicated hotel floor with both a four and five star offering. Passengers are transported between Terminal 3 and Concourse A by underground trains and shuttle busses from where they can depart through 20 gates when the facility becomes fully operational.

With the world’s largest fleet of A380 aircraft at 31 and another 59 on order, Emirates continues to set the pace for A380 deployment. In the four years since the Emirates A380 has been in operation over 11.5 million passengers have flown on the aircraft, covering 169 million kilometres. In 2012 alone, Emirates added 11 A380s to its fleet.

ENDS

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