Emirates (airline)

Not to be confused with the London cable car, formerly called the Emirates Air Line.

Emirates
IATA ICAO Call sign
EK UAE EMIRATES
Founded25 March 1985; 39 years ago (1985-03-25)
Commenced operations25 October 1985; 39 years ago (1985-10-25)
HubsDubai International Airport
Frequent-flyer programEmirates Skywards
Subsidiaries
  • Arabian Adventures
  • Congress Solutions International
  • Emirates Holidays
  • Emirates Tours
Fleet size249
Destinations152[1]
Parent companyThe Emirates Group
HeadquartersGarhoud, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Key people
FounderAhmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum
RevenueIncrease US$ 33 billion (2023-24)[2]
Net incomeIncrease US$ 4.68 billion (2023-24)[2]
Employees108,996 (30 September 2023)[2]
Websiteemirates.com

Emirates (Arabic: طَيَران الإمارات DMG: Ṭayarān Al-Imārāt) is one of the two flag carriers of the United Arab Emirates (the other being Etihad Airways). Based in Garhoud, Dubai, the airline is a subsidiary of The Emirates Group, which is owned by the government of Dubai's Investment Corporation of Dubai.[3] It is the largest airline in the Middle East,[4] operating more than 3,600 flights per week from its hub at Terminal 3 of Dubai International Airport. It operates to more than 150 cities in 80 countries across six continents on its fleet of nearly 250 aircraft.[5] Cargo activities are undertaken by Emirates SkyCargo.[6]

Emirates is the world's fourth-largest airline by scheduled revenue passenger-kilometers flown.[7] It is also the second-largest in terms of freight tonne-kilometers flown.

During the mid-1980s, Gulf Air began to cut back its services to Dubai. As a result, Emirates was founded on 15 March 1985, with backing from Dubai's royal family and its first two aircraft provided by Pakistan International Airlines. With $10 million in start-up capital, it was required to operate independently of government subsidies. Pakistan International Airlines also provided free training facilities to Emirates' cabin crew at Karachi Airport. The airline was founded by Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the airline's present chairman. In the years following its founding, the airline rapidly expanded both its fleet and its destinations. In October 2008, Emirates moved all of its operations at Dubai International Airport to Terminal 3.[8]

Emirates operates a mixed fleet of Airbus and Boeing wide-body aircraft and is one of the few airlines to operate an all-wide-body aircraft fleet (excluding Emirates Executive).[9] As of August 2024, Emirates is the world's largest Airbus A380 operator with 123 aircraft in service.[10] Since its introduction, the Airbus A380 has become an integral part of the Emirates fleet, especially on long-haul, high-density routes. Emirates is also the world's largest Boeing 777 operator with 133 aircraft in service.[11]

  1. ^ "Emirates on ch-aviation". ch-aviation. Archived from the original on 20 October 2013. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  2. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference cdn.ek.aero2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Emirates and Dnata now under ICD | Aviation". Gulf News. 30 December 2008. Archived from the original on 3 January 2013. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  4. ^ "Emirates Flight Information". www.seatguru.com. Archived from the original on 15 October 2023. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  5. ^ "Emirates aircraft cover 432 million kilometres across the globe in six months". Emirates.com. 28 July 2016. Archived from the original on 30 September 2017. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
  6. ^ "Emirates SkyCargo". The Emirates Group. Archived from the original on 15 September 2012. Retrieved 26 August 2009.
  7. ^ "2016 Infographic" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 July 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  8. ^ "Emirates Announces 2009 Expansion Plan". Business Standard. 19 February 2009. Archived from the original on 25 July 2011. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  9. ^ "Emirates Executive". Emirates Executive. Archived from the original on 19 January 2019. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
  10. ^ "The Emirates A380 fleet | Our fleet | The Emirates Experience | Emirates Philippines". Philippines. Archived from the original on 25 October 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  11. ^ "The Emirates Boeing 777 fleet which flies the captain German Garcia | Our fleet | The Emirates Experience | Emirates Philippines". Philippines. Archived from the original on 6 October 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2020.