Emirates was in the middle of one big change of its fleet. Now the Dubai-based airline is planning cabin upgrades for even more long-haul planes – something that will finally give it Modern high-class universal chair to more cities.
Last week, Emirates announced it would embark on retrofitting more wide-body jets than initially expected: The airline now plans to refurbish 43 more Airbus A380s and 28 more Boeing 777s.
That’s not to mention the 67 superjumbos and 53 777s that Emirates has prepared for interior renovations – nearly two dozen of which have already been completed.
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Overall, the planned refits totaling 191 aircraft show “a clear commitment to enhancing the customer experience with the best suite of products across every cabin,” Emirates president Tim Clark said in a statement. statement announcing this news.
Plan to upgrade Airbus A380, Boeing 777
This is certainly a time of great change for Emirates’ fleet.
Most notably, the airline has received orders for hundreds of new jets, which will significantly increase its aircraft fleet in the coming years.
However, in recent years, they have also been proactive in introducing plans to modernize existing jets.
Emirates first announced plans to refurbish 120 wide-body aircraft in the late 2010s as part of a $2 billion investment – a plan that would have made it the first Gulf airline to add cabins premium economy class.
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Upgrade Airbus A380
To date, Emirates has completed retrofitting 22 of its A380s. Early results are promising: The airline is the only one doing it took home two TPG awards in 2023, recognized for best first class and best premium economy products — the latter featuring spacious seats and ergonomic amenities such as calf rests and generous backrests.
Today, you can fly Emirates premium economy on the A380 to four US airports: New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH).
Boeing 777 aircraft improvements
Next, Emirates will begin refurbishing its first 777 jets in July, with work expected to take around two weeks per aircraft.
The interior overhaul will include all-new business class seats with an updated (and much improved) 1-2-1 configuration, along with a new 24-seat premium economy cabin.
With last week’s announcement, the airline now plans to increase the scope of its retrofit plans by almost 60%… a revelation that comes before Emirates has even completed half of the work on its A380s.
Expanding the premium economy
Between these retrofits and expected new aircraft deliveries, Emirates expects to fly premium economy aircraft to 42 cities globally by February 2025.
More than 300 jets on order
Emirates’ plan to modernize and develop its fleet does not stop at retrofitting.
At the Dubai Air Show last November, the airline placed an additional $58 billion in wide-body aircraft orders, including Boeing 777 and 787 and many other Airbus A350 aircraft.
In total, the airline currently has 260 jets in its fleet, but 310 are on order.
Its order book includes commitments on:
- 65 A350s
- 205 777 seconds
- 35 Dreamer
Emirates’ first A350 is expected to enter service in September.
Bottom line
While Emirates’ order book and retrofit plans require major future spending commitments, it is worth noting that the carrier only reported on Monday, reaching a record profit of $5.1 billion for 2023-24. During that period, the airline served 51.9 million passengers, an increase of 19% over the previous year.
With all these changes to its fleet, more US travelers will finally have the opportunity to fly in Emirates’ new (or overhauled) cabins in the coming years. That could be good news for travelers wanting to transfer credit card points arrive Emirates Skywards program for premium economy seats – or hopefuls score a flat seat in Emirates’ iconic A380 first class cabin.
