In advance of the launch of its services to the German city of Hamburg on March 1, Emirates introduced itself to the city with a series of media and travel trade briefings on Friday (20th January).
Emirates already has excellent representation in Germany with double daily flights to Munich and Frankfurt, and a daily service to Düsseldorf. Germany is one of Emirates' largest and most important markets and the introduction of services to Hamburg, the Dubai-based carrier's fourth gateway to Germany, will further strengthen this position.
The number of visitors from Germany to Dubai has been escalating rapidly, with recent figures showing that more than 236,000 Germans visited Dubai in 2004 based on hotel occupation, this is up from 156,000 visitors the previous year - which proves how popular Dubai is becoming among German visitors.
With an eye on the strengthening trade ties between Germany and Dubai, Emirates' services will cater to the growing demand from travellers as well as shippers looking for speedy air links between the huge port of Hamburg and Dubai, the Middle East's major trading hub.
Emirates will operate its A330-200 aircraft in a three-class configuration on the Hamburg route, offering 237 seats and 14 tonnes of bellyhold capacity. Flight EK059 will take off daily from Dubai International Airport at 08:55hrs arriving at Hamburg International Airport at 12:55hrs the same day. The return flight, EK060, will depart at 15:35hrs, arriving Dubai at 00:45hrs the next morning.
Emirates currently employs more than 250 German nationals - including many flight-deck and cabin crew - that work with the nearly 100 different nationalities employed by the company.
Since its launch in 1985, Emirates Airline has received more than 280 international awards in recognition of its efforts to provide unsurpassed levels of customer service, and passenger to and from Hamburg can look forward to excellent levels of service every time they fly with Emirates.
Emirates operates a fleet of 88 all wide-bodied aircraft which is among the youngest in the skies, with an average age of 55 months - more than eight years less than the industry average. The airline plans to more than double its size by 2012, and 2006 sees a dynamic expansion plan in progress with new services planned to Thiruvananthapuram and Kolkata in India, Abidjan in Cote D'Ivoire, as well as destinations in Japan and China.
