Emirates has announced that all of its flights to Spain will be operated by the A380.
In addition to the existing double-daily A380 service to Barcelona, the airline will operate a double-daily A380 service to Madrid, “significantly boosting seat capacity” from Dubai to Spain, Emirates has said in a statement.
“This change enables more A380 to A380 connections to and from key business and leisure destinations such as Australia, China, South Korea and South East Asia with just one stop in Dubai,” the statement noted. Also, there will be a total daily capacity between Dubai and Spain of 2,044 seats in each direction.
From September 1, Emirates flights EK143/144 will be operated by an Airbus A380 aircraft in a three-class configuration with 14 Private Suites in First Class, 76 flat-bed seats in Business Class and 399 seats in Economy Class. Passengers in all classes will enjoy access to Wi-Fi and over 2,500 channels of films, TV shows, music and games, with a selection in Spanish, through ice Digital Widescreen. They will also experience the hospitality of the airline’s multi-cultural cabin crew, with Spanish speakers on all flights to and from Spain, and
regionally inspired cuisine.
Emirates flight EK143 departs from Dubai International Airport at 2.30pm and arrives in Madrid at 8.20pm. The outbound flight, EK144, departs from Madrid at 10.05pm and arrives in Dubai at 7.15am the following day. The airline currently operates two daily services between Dubai and Madrid, as well as a double-daily A380 service between Barcelona and Dubai. From the airport, Emirates also enables “seamless rail connections” from Barcelona and Madrid to 25 cities across Spain through its partnership with Renfe rail, the statement adds.
The airline, meanwhile, stressed that the links between Madrid and Emirates “extended far beyond” its double-daily service, as Emirates has been a sponsor of Real Madrid since 2011.
Also, through its SkyCargo division, Emirates facilitates the import and export of key products, connecting Spanish companies to the world. In 2016, Emirates transported over 70,000 tonnes of cargo from Spain, including apparel, food products such as fish and olive oil, pharmaceuticals and shoes bound for the UAE, Africa, Hong Kong, the US, Australia and Mexico. In addition to its four daily passenger flights, Emirates operates dedicated cargo flights with its freighter aircraft to both Barcelona and Zaragoza.