Emirates eyes highest spot in aviation
Hendarsyah Tarmizi, The Jakarta Post, Dubai
The terrorist attack on New York City and Washington on Sept. 11 has created turmoil in the already weak aviation industry.
Many of the world's major airlines have to ground planes and delay the delivery of new aircraft due to falling demand. Routes have also been significantly reduced as air carriers are struggling to remain afloat.
The situation in the industry is really quite astounding, with many aviation analysts describing the condition as being the worst ever in the world's aviation history. Only a handful of carriers are unaffected by the crisis. Emirates, the international airline of the United Arab Emirates, could be among them.
The Dubai-based Emirates announced last week a record US$15 billion in orders for 58 aircraft, indicating a strong commitment to fulfilling its ambitious plan of becoming one of the world's major airline operators despite the unfavorable business climate.
The orders, which were signed during the opening of the 7th International Aerospace Exhibition in Dubai on Sunday, covers 25 Boeing 777s and 22 Airbus A380 superjumbos, eight Airbus A340- 600s and three A330s. This will boost Emirates' total fleet to 100 by the year 2010 from the 36 at present.
"The timing of this order -- hot on the heels of recent events -- is no coincidence. We are determined not to allow present difficulties to deflect our resolve," Emirates' chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum told media signing the deal.
With the new orders, Emirates, which only used two aircraft leased form Pakistan International Airlines during the early stage of its operation in 1985, will become the largest operator of Airbus aircraft in the world. The orders will also make the airline Boeing's largest customer in the Middle East.
Emirates, which flies to 56 destinations in 39 countries, operates 296 flights per week out of the airline's base at Dubai International Airport.
Emirates's managing director Maurice Flanagan said that Emirates would operate the A380 planes to serve routes to Frankfurt, London and other cities in Europe, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta and other destinations in the Asian and Pacific regions.
The flight expansion will also cover several routes in Asia to enable the airline to take advantage of improved trade relations between the Asian and Pacific regions with Middle East countries, he said.
The airline, which at present flies Jakarta four days a week, will also expand its flights to the Indonesian capital to meet rising demand.
"Emirates would like to expand its flights to Jakarta and, if possible, to other Indonesian destinations," he said, while admitting that the airline had sought a permit to fly to Bali but the request was turned down by the Indonesian government.
According to him, the airline's flights to Southeast Asia were relatively normal despite a slump within the world's travel industry. He said that the seat occupancy rate was about 70 percent, slightly lower than the figure before the terrorist attacks.
"The demand has started to pick up again," he said, adding that he believed the crisis would not last long.
In addition to the $15 billion order, Dubai, one of seven states in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), also announced during the airshow a $2.5 billion expansion of the Dubai International Airport to support Emirates' fleet expansion.
Launched on October 25, 1985, Emirates has become one of the world's fw airlines to have received international recognition for its quality service.
The Dubai carrier employs 500 pilots and over 2,600 cabin crew, representing over 86 nationalities, and has received a total of 350 international awards since its establishment.