Emirates is celebrating 10 years of A380 operations today. Since its first A380 flight to New York on August 1, 2008, the airline has carried more than 105 million passengers and clocked in more than 1.5 billion kilometres on 115,000 flights, equivalent to 39,000 trips around the globe.

The airline has also served over 120 million meals on the A380 since 2008 and has 1,500 flight deck crew and over 20,000 cabin crew specially trained to operate its A380 fleet.

Emirates is the world’ largest operator of the A380 aircraft, with 104 double-decker aircraft flying to 49 cities on six continents on scheduled services with more than 80 daily departures from Dubai, the airline’s hub.

Sir Tim Clark, president Emirates Airline, said: “It’s been 10 extraordinary years since the first Emirates A380 flight took to the skies, and today it has become one of the most recognisable and admired aircraft in the world. Passengers love to fly it because of its spaciousness which provides more comfort across all classes, and its iconic products like the OnBoard Lounge, Shower Spa and First Class suites have redefined air travel."

Emirates revolutionised the A380’s cabin space design when it introduced its bespoke version of the aircraft in 2008, incorporating higher ceilings, mood-lighting as well as signature, industry-first elements like its OnBoard Lounge, a social area at 40,000 feet where jet-setters could meet in an ambient setting.

In 2017, Emirates introduced the next generation of the OnBoard Lounge featuring a sleeker design, new colour palette, social seating arrangement and surround sound, among other touches.

"The Emirates A380 has also had a significant impact on the aerospace industry and its high-value supply chains, fuelling hundreds of thousands of jobs for skilled workers, and creating significant economic benefits in countries which have A380 production facilities, Clark said.

"The aircraft continues to boost tourism and trade wherever it flies by stimulating further traffic and demand, and we hope that it continues to play an important role in the economies and societies that it serves in the years to come,” he added.

Airbus estimates that Emirates’ A380 orders support 41,000 direct, indirect and induced jobs in Europe alone. The estimated Europe-wide impact of Emirates’ A380 investment contributes €3.4 billion to the GDP of the region.

In January 2018, Emirates ordered a further 36 A380s worth $16 billion, taking the airline’s commitment for the aircraft to 178 units, and further generating catalytic benefits for European economies with the airline’s impending deliveries beyond 2020.

As the largest operator of the Airbus A380, Emirates’ engineering division, based in Dubai, has become a global leader in A380 maintenance. The airline operates modern, extensive facilities that include seven heavy maintenance hangars and four light maintenance hangars that can all accommodate the A380.

Emirates Engineering has also amassed the experience, know-how and infrastructure to provide the most comprehensive Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facilities and services in the world, with 157 A380 C-Checks conducted to date. - TradeArabia News Service