Emirates' 777 aircraft are to be fitted with premium economy cabins
Emirates has announced it will be introducing more premium economy cabins to its fleet, flying the service on more than 40 routes by February 2025.
Emirates currently operates a premium economy service on its A380 aircraft flying to 14 destinations, including cities such as New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, London, Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland, Christchurch, Singapore and Mumbai.
The airline will now be undertaking a refurbishment of a further 43 A380s and 28 Boeing 777 aircraft are also to be retrofitted with the popular premium cabin.
Each Boeing 777 will take around two weeks to fit-out and will include a refresh of the first class cabin, the introduction of all new business class seats in an updated 1-2-1 configuration and the addition of 24 premium economy seats. To make room for the premium economy seats, 50 economy seats will be removed.
“We’re topping up our multi-billion dollar investment in the retrofit programme to introduce cutting-edge cabin products on more of our A380s and Boeing 777s,” said Emirates’ president Sir Tim Clark. “The addition of more aircraft fitted with our newest generation seats, updated cabin finishings and a contemporary colour palette also marks a significant step in ensuring more customers can consistently experience our premium products across both aircraft types.”
Emirates launched its premium economy cabins, the first Middle Eastern airline to do so, in 2021. The cabins were initially added to A380 aircraft flying to Paris, London and Sydney. Last summer the premium economy service was launched on Emirates’ Singapore A380 service but so far there has been no move to include it on Hong Kong flights. At the time of the Singapore launch, Emirates said demand for the premium economy offering was strong.
Competition is indeed strengthenin in the premium economy sector, with many airlines now offering the cabin. Cathay recently announced an upgrade to its premium service with improved comfort, bluetooth audio streaming and 4K on demand.
The Emirates product has six-way adjustable headrests, calf-rests, foot-rests, in-seat charging points and side cocktail table. Emirates’ premium economy passengers are welcomed with a drink when they step on board.
By next February, 42 cities will receive the Emirates’ premium economy service, although so far there has been no confirmation as to which destinations.
Read more stories like this by signing up for our FREE weekly newsletter, straight to your inbox and packed with Hong Kong and Asia news, holiday inspiration, resort reviews and giveaways.
Comments