20-May-2010 9:04 AM

Emirates A380 will return to New York from Oct-2010

Direct News Source

19-May-2010 Emirates' A380 superjumbo will make a much-anticipated return to New York on 31st October, the airline has announced.

The aircraft's reinstatement on one of Emirates' double daily JFK routes comes as the carrier reported a significant increase in revenue for the Americas in 2009-10, representing a year-on-year rise of 8.1 percent.

Growth in the Americas helped steer the airline to a net profit of AED 3.5 billion (US$ 964 million), while 27.5 million passengers flew with Emirates over the last financial year, over 20 percent more than in 2008- 09.

Tim Clark, President of Emirates Airline said: "We promised to return the A380 to New York as soon as demand recovered and we have been true to our word."

He continued: "Against some of the toughest operating conditions ever faced, the results for the Americas have been hugely encouraging. This achievement reflects our success in maintaining our business as usual approach and remaining faithful to our strategy of product and service excellence."

"As we look to 2010-11 and beyond, Emirates will continue to invest in its products and services to build on the resurgent demand for air travel within the Americas. Our plans for the future also include adding new US cities to our four existing gateways: New York, Houston, Los Angeles and San Francisco."

Emirates' expansion plans for the region will be boosted by a significant increase in capacity. The airline is scheduled to receive 11 new wide-body aircraft in 2010, including Airbus A380s and Boeing 777s.

Emirates currently operates eight A380 aircraft, serving London Heathrow, Toronto, Paris, Jeddah, Bangkok, Seoul, Sydney and Auckland. In March 2010, the airline also announced the start of A380 services to Beijing from 1st August and Manchester from September.

The much-praised superjumbos offer an Onboard Lounge for First Class and Business Class passengers, with a wide range of drinks and canapés, as well as the space to socialise or simply relax.

Passengers in all classes can lose themselves in the quietness of the aircraft and the much-enjoyed ice entertainment system. There are more than 1,000 channels of on-demand entertainment including 200 movies from around the world, 100 TV channels, more than 500 audio channels, 100 video games and news, sports and business headlines.

From 31st October, Flight EK201 will be operated by an A380 aircraft departing Dubai (DXB) at 08:30, arriving New York (JFK) at 14:15 the same day. EK202 departs JFK at 23:00, arriving Dubai at 19:45 the following day. The daily A380 service will complement Emirates second daily flight aboard the Boeing 777-300ER.