Amsterdam joins Emirates’ A380 network

Emirates is to upgrade its Amsterdam service to an A380 from 1 August.

Since launching passenger flights to the Netherlands in May 2010, the route has been operated with a combination of Boeing 777-300ER and 777-200LR aircraft, arranged in a three-class configuration.

Following 18 months of strong demand, the Boeings will be replaced with the airline’s flagship Airbus A380. Spread over two decks, the remarkably quiet aircraft provides 427 seats in Economy, 76 mini-pods in Business Class and 14 First Class Private Suites – next to two Onboard Shower Spas. Available to all premium class passengers on the upper deck is a popular Onboard Lounge where travellers can exchange tales over a drink.

“To upgrade from a 777 operation to an A380 in a relatively short space of time demonstrates the strong demand from travellers to fly with Emirates and experience our superior products and services,” said Salem Obaidalla, Emirates’ Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Europe & Russian Federation.

“The combination of introducing our largest passenger aircraft onto the route when we already have such an established cargo track record is a formidable partnership, which will benefit tourism and trade between the Netherlands and the UAE,” Obaidalla added.

From 1st Aug, EK 147 becomes an A380 flight, leaving Dubai at 0825hrs and arriving in Amsterdam Schiphol at 1330hrs. The return double decker service, EK148, departs Amsterdam at 1530hrs and lands in Dubai at 2359hrs.

Amongst its 169 aircraft in operation, Emirates has a fleet of 20 A380s which currently serve Auckland, Bangkok, Beijing, Hong Kong, Jeddah, Johannesburg, Kuala Lumpur, London Heathrow, Manchester, Munich, New York JFK, Paris, Rome, Seoul, Shanghai, Sydney and Toronto. Amsterdam will become the 19th A380 point after an A380 deployment to Tokyo in July.

Since being introduced to the airline’s fleet in 2008, the Emirates’ A380 has carried around 8 million passengers and is supported by more than 3,000 dedicated cabin crew and pilots.

Travellers in all cabins can enjoy the airline’s highly decorated ice entertainment system, captivating passengers with 1,200 channels of movies, games, music and audio programs.

Emirates’ hospitality is delivered by highly trained multi-national staff, both in the air and on the ground who speak as many languages as destinations in the airline’s quickly expanding network.

There is a long history of trade between the Netherlands and the Arab region, and trade between the Netherlands and the UAE runs into billions of US dollars annually. A large number of Dutch companies have a presence in the UAE. Emirates SkyCargo has been sending freighters into Amsterdam since 1994.