Emirates

Alliance:

None

Frequent Flyer Programme:

Skywards

Fleet:

137

Founded:

1985

Country of Origin:

United Arab Emirates

Major Hub Airports:

Dubai International Airport

Number of Destinations:

100 cities in 60 countries

Major Destinations:

Africa
Asia
Athens
Auckland
Birmingham
Brisbane
Cairo
Christchurch
Europe
Frankfurt
Germany
Glasgow
Indian Sub Continent
Istanbul
Italy
London
Maldives
Manchester
Mauritius
Melbourne
Middle East
Munich
North America
Paris
Perth
Rome
Seychelles
Sydney
Vienna

Brief Summary / Interesting Facts/ Interesting Destinations:

Emirates was established in 1985 with financial backing from the Dubai Royal Family with just two aircraft. Emirates is Dubai's official airline and is wholly owned by the government. Today, the airline boasts a fleet of 137 aircraft, with a further 156 aircraft on order. In 2008, Emirates began operating out of Terminal 3 at Dubai International Airport - a new terminal dedicated exclusively to Emirates.

Since its inception, Emirates has won numerous consumer and industry awards. It was named Skytrax Airline of the Year in 2001 & 2002. In 2004, it was rated second overall for Airline of the Year and in 2009 the airline was ranked fifth overall. From 2005 to 2009 the airline won the Best Inflight Entertainment. Emirates is rated a 5 star airline by Skytrax.

Emirates have developed a reputation in the aviation industry for being a trendsetter. Emirates fly four of the world's longest non-stop commercial flights from Dubai to San Francisco, Houston, Los Angeles and Sao Paulo. Emirates was also only the second airline to take delivery of the Airbus Superjumbo - the A380-800 - the world's first true twin deck aircraft. Emirates' first A380-800 flight was on 1 August 2008 from Dubai to New York. The initial Emirates A380-800 is configured with 489 seats across 3 classes - these include 14 first class suites, 76 business class and 399 economy class seats.