By Akram Medhat
Emirates today celebrated the delivery of its 100th Airbus A380 aircraft at the manufacturer's facility in the German city of Hamburg.
In this context, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum said that the operation of A380 aircraft has had wide positive effects on the aerospace industries and on the aviation industry in general, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs, stimulating innovation and leading to the development of new products in various activities, such as ground handling and catering, airport facilities, aircraft cabin products and others.
He added that the A380 has left a distinctive mark, made it possible to raise the travel experience of the company's customers to higher levels and has been a great success for Emirates. The aircraft itself is a wonderful engineering masterpiece, and despite being the world's largest passenger aircraft, it is the most efficient and the quietest in the skies, he said, noting the use of home-style luxury and comfort inside the aircraft to redefine what passengers expect in products and experiences, and saying: "Our pilots love flying the A380, and our customers prefer to travel on board it."
He noted that this model has been deployed to congested airports as well as to regional airports, and we have been able to increase traffic through them, stressing continued work with Airbus to develop A380 products, as we look forward to receiving the remaining 42 aircraft from the firm orders.
Emirates' 100th A380, powered by Rolls-Royce engines, offers 512 seats in three classes: 14 private suites in First Class, 76 seats in Business Class and 426 seats in Economy Class. It will be displayed at the Dubai Airshow 2017 and will then enter service with the fleet.
The Year of Zayed
In a related context, Emirates unveiled during the celebration a tribute marking 100 years since the birth of the late Sheikh Zayed, founder of the United Arab Emirates and architect of its renaissance, in the form of a giant decal on the exterior fuselage of its 100th A380.
Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum stated that the UAE has announced that 2018 will be the Year of Zayed, marking 100 years since the birth of the Founding Father and celebrating his achievements, saying: "We are proud to spread our appreciation around the world for this leader, who played the pivotal role in the founding, development and progress of the United Arab Emirates, at a time when we are receiving our 100th A380." He stressed that, by operating this aircraft bearing his image on its fuselage, he looks forward to carrying a message around the world highlighting the inspiration, boldness, courage and determination he possessed.
Positive Effects on the Skies and the Aviation Industry
Airbus estimates that Emirates' A380 order alone has supported 41,000 direct, indirect and induced jobs in Europe, including more than 14,000 jobs in Germany alone. These jobs require high skills and have great added value along the supply chain, which multiplies the positive impact on the countries where Airbus has aircraft production facilities.
The number of customers who have flown on Emirates' A380 aircraft has reached about 85 million passengers since the type entered service in 2008; it employs 1,500 pilots, and more than 23,000 cabin crew members of various nationalities serve on its flights.
The total impact of investments in the Emirates A380 program across Europe is estimated at about 3.4 billion euros in gross domestic product for 2013/2014, while this impact on GDP is estimated at about 1.2 billion euros each for France and Germany (according to analysis by Frontier Economics in 2015).
Emirates had signed a historic deal worth 7.8 billion euros with Rolls-Royce to purchase Trent 900 engines, including a long-term service program for these engines, to power 50 A380 aircraft, the first of which entered service with the fleet in 2016. The deal is the largest in Rolls-Royce's history and one of the largest export orders for UK companies, representing part of Emirates' continued investments in the United Kingdom and Europe in general.
For his part, Dominic Horwood, Rolls-Royce's director of customers and services, expressed his pride in the company's engines powering Emirates' 100th A380, adding that we look forward to further strengthening relations with this distinguished carrier in the coming years.
The A380 in the Emirates Fleet
Emirates is the world's largest A380 operator, serving 48 cities on six continents with scheduled flights on its double-decker aircraft, and the number of airports that have received this model has reached 70, including one-off flights, flights for specific occasions, test flights and special missions.
Emirates has received an average of 11 A380s a year since taking delivery of its first aircraft of this model in 2008, and in 2016/2017 the fleet received 19 A380s, bringing the number in the fleet to 100 aircraft today.
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In Dubai, Emirates operates the largest A380 hub through a terminal dedicated to this model, the first and only one of its kind in the world, built at an investment cost of $3.3 billion to provide maximum comfort for travelers, as First and Business Class passengers can board the aircraft directly from the lounges, and the building houses duty-free shops, a range of restaurants and cafes, a spa and other facilities.
It is worth noting that the celebration was attended by Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Airline and Group; Sir Tim Clark, President of Emirates Airline; Dr. Thomas Enders, CEO of Airbus; Dominic Horwood, Rolls-Royce's director of customers and services; the UAE Ambassador to Germany; Frank Horch, minister of economy, transport and innovation in the Hamburg city government; and a number of invited officials, dignitaries, industry partners and representatives of international media.
