KARACHI: Emirates celebrated an important fleet milestone with the delivery of the final Boeing 777-300ER aircraft on its order books.
A6-EQP is the 190th Boeing 777 aircraft to be delivered to Emirates, the world’s largest operator of Boeing 777 aircraft and also the only airline in the world to have operated all the six variants of the Boeing 777 family. One of out every eight 777 aircraft ever manufactured by Boeing has been delivered to Emirates. Emirates will also be one of the first airlines in the world to fly the two next generation models- the Boeing 777-8 and 777-9.
It was also the 146th delivery of a Boeing 777-300ER aircraft to Emirates. The airline welcomed the first Boeing 777-300ER aircraft into its fleet in March 2005 and over the last 13 years, the 777-300ER has become the backbone of Emirates’ fleet operating currently to over 119 destinations across the airline’s global network. Emirates has operated one out of every five Boeing 777-300ER aircraft produced to date and the average age of a Boeing 777-3000ER in Emirates’ fleet is a mere 6.5 years.
Sir Tim Clark, President of Emirates Airline said: “The Boeing 777-300ER has been a cornerstone of Emirates’ success story as the world’s largest international airline. The aircraft’s efficiency, range and payload capabilities have enabled us to connect our customers across six continents to and through Dubai, and offer them a flight experience that is second to none. With 140 of these aircraft in our fleet, the Boeing 777-300ER will continue to play an integral role in our operations and facilitating global tourism and trade opportunities in the years to come.”
On the partnership with Boeing, Sir Tim said: “We’ve worked closely with Boeing on the 777 programme over the last three decades, and we will build on this partnership as we start taking delivery of the 777-8 and 777-9 aircraft from 2020.”
Emirates’ Boeing 777 fleet has carried close to 350 million passengers on more than 1.28 million flights and covered over 6.6 billion kilometres since 1996. That’s the equivalent of flying almost 8600 times to the moon and back.
Setting the standards for passenger experience and safety, Emirates has continually invested in its onboard product and services. The airline recently unveiled brand new cabins for its Boeing 777-300ER aircraft including the game-changing fully-enclosed First Class private suites as well as newly-designed seats and improved inflight entertainment systems for Business and Economy class cabins.
Emirates has also started a programme to reconfigure its 10 Boeing 777-200LR aircraft, installing new wider Business Class seats as well as a completely refreshed Economy Class for improved passenger comfort.
Since 2009, Emirates has also been operating the Boeing 777-F dedicated freighter aircraft to facilitate global trade. With a capacity of over 100 tonnes per flight, Emirates’ fleet of 13 Boeing 777-Fs move a variety of cargo, including heavy and outsized shipments, pharmaceuticals, flowers and race horses on scheduled weekly flights to over 40 global destinations. In 2017, Emirates’ Boeing 777-F aircraft also executed more than 370 charter flights over and above regular operations.
Emirates operates one of the youngest aircraft fleets in the world with an average aircraft age of 5.87 years, a figure that is much lower than the accepted norm in the aviation industry. The airline pursues an ambitious fleet renewal strategy by retiring older aircraft and introducing newer and more advanced aircraft leading to more efficient operations.
From 2020, the airline will start taking delivery of 35 Boeing 777-8s and 115 Boeing 777-9s. These next generation aircraft will have a more fuel efficient design and will feature larger windows, increased cabin pressure and humidity, higher ceilings, wider cabin and an advanced inflight entertainment system contributing to a superior customer experience.
