Emirates has taken delivery of its 100th Airbus A380 aircraft, less than ten years since the carrier received its first superjumbo.
The aircraft features a special delivery commemorating the 100th anniversary of the birth of the UAE’s founding father HH Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan in 2018.
Emirates and Airbus used the event to reaffirm the carrier’s commitment to the A380 programme, with Emirates’ chairman and CEO Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum stating that the airline “will work closely with Airbus and our partners to continually enhance our A380 product as we look ahead to receiving our remaining 42 aircraft on order”.
To put the milestone in context, around 220 A380s have so far been delivered to 13 customers, with Emirates now operating a little under half of them.
Over 85 million passengers have flown on the carrier’s superjumbos to date, with over 70 airports having welcomed the aircraft (including one-off and commemorative services).
Emirates receives an average of 11 A380s per year, with a record 19 having been delivered in the financial year 2016/17.
Commenting on the occasion Sheikh Ahmed said:
“For Emirates, the A380 has been a success. We’ve been able to utilise it at slot-constrained airports, as well as at regional and ‘secondary’ airports where we have grown passenger demand.
“Each time we deploy an A380 onto a route, it typically stimulates further traffic and demand as travellers are attracted by our flagship A380 experience.”
Emirates is set to unveil its new first class product at this month’s Dubai Airshow, taking place from November 12-16.
