Following the recent announcement that Shanghai is to be served solely by an A380 service, Emirates has confirmed the same will apply to Beijing.
The all-A380 service to Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) will start from July 1, when the second daily flights EK308 and EK309 are switched from B777-300ER operations.
Flight times remain unchanged, with EK308 departing Dubai at 1100 and arriving in Beijing at 2220. The return service EK309 departs PEK at 0725, landing back in the UAE at 1150.
Deploying the 519-seat A380 will increase capacity on the route and support the growing volume of business and leisure travel between the two countries.
In 2016, Dubai welcomed 540,000 Chinese tourists, an increase of 20 per cent on the previous year. This is set to grow further, with the UAE officially announcing free visa-on-arrival policy for Chinese citizens in November 2016.
Adam Li, vice president, China, Emirates, said: “Emirates is committed to supporting China’s economic, trade and connectivity ambitions as it looks to connect the world through the Belt and Road Initiative. Emirates is honoured to deploy all-A380 services to Beijing and Shanghai.”
