Dubai-based Emirates (EK/UAE) has taken delivery of its first Airbus A350-900 marking an important step for the airline in its fleet growth strategy.
Emirates has a long standing relationship with Airbus being the worlds largest operator of the A380 but has relied heavily on Boeing to form the backbone of its long haul fleet, namely the Boeing 777.
This delivery of the first of 65 A350-900s Emirates has on order and they plan to use the highly efficient aircraft to establish the new “Mega Hub” at Dubai World Central (DWC) airport.
Emirates has configured their A350s with a three class cabin with 32 business class, 21 premium economy and 321 economy seats and the cabin also has access to the new Airbus HBCplus satcom system ensuring global connectivity which will be a first for any airline in the middle-east
In the 300-410 seat aircraft range, the A350 is the most modern and most efficient airliner currently available and combined with the ability to operate on 50% SAF fuel blend, it helps Emirates to meet their global emissions targets.
The aircraft is powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines and the wings are made in Airbus’ wing manufacturing facility in Broughton, North Wales.
Emirates will be using the A350 fleet to help broaden Dubai’s economic agenda which aims to add 400 worldwide cities to Dubai’s foreign trade map in the next 10 years.
DWC Mega Hub Plans
Dubai World Central (DWC) will eventually host all Emirates flights by around 2034 offering five parallel runways once a AED128 Million plan is finished. Once complete it will be around five times the size of the current Dubai International Airport (DXB).
The airport currently operates mainly cargo services but some passenger flights from Europe and Russia already operate from DWC.
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