Emirates is embarking on a major expansion in Australia.
From 1 November 2012, the Dubai-based airline will launch four weekly flights to Adelaide, rising to a daily service from 1 February 2013. The South Australian city will become the airline’s fifth destination in the country. In addition, Emirates’ current double-daily service to Perth will grow to 19 weekly flights from 1 December, before becoming a triple-daily operation from 1 March next year.
“Emirates is currently in a concentrated and sustained period of global expansion,” said HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman & Chief Executive of the Emirates Group. “The addition of Adelaide to our network and the boost to our Perth operations demonstrates our commitment to investment and growth in our Australian operations and highlights the economic strength and global demand for the two cities as business, leisure and investment destinations.”
In addition to the Adelaide and Perth expansion, Emirates will boost capacity to Melbourne with the introduction of daily A380 services in October. The airline already operates superjumbo flights to Sydney.
Flights to Adelaide will initially operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays, using a Boeing 777-300ER in a three-class configuration. The five weekly Perth flights being added from December will operate every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, also using a three-class B777-300ER.
Emirates is battling with Gulf rivals Etihad and Qatar Airways for dominance in the lucrative ‘kangaroo route’ market connecting Australia with Europe. Abu Dhabi-based Etihad, which recently upped its stake in Virgin Australia, operates flights to Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney, while Qatar Airways has just launched a new service to Perth, complementing its existing flights to Melbourne.
