Dubai Airshow 2021: Emirates to reintroduce 60 A380s by end of year

Airline expects continued growth in second half of fiscal year after returning to profitability in October

Airbus will stop production of its A380 superjet by 2021 Reuters

People look at a Emirates A380 airbus landing in Nice, south of France. AFP

Sheikh Mohammed takes a tour of an Emirates A380 during the opening ceremony of the Dubai Airshow in 2013. AFP

A visitor poses for a photo in front of an Emirates A380 Airbus passenger aircraft decorated with a giant portrait of UAE founding father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan. AFP

Airbus and Emirates celebrate the 100th A380 in 2018. Courtesy Emirates

The A380 is the World biggest passenger jet . AP

Emirates will receive 14 more A380s from Airbus before the plane maker ends production. Courtesy Emirates

Airbus said Thursday it will stop making A380 superjumbo jets in 2021 after struggling to win clients. AP Photo

Interior of Business Class on an Emirates A380. Courtesy: Emirates

Interior of Business Class on Emirates A380. Courtsey: Emirates

An air stewardess arranges bedsheets of a double bed in a suite of Singapore Airlines' new Airbus A380 during a tour of the plane at Changi Airport in Singapore. AFP

An Airbus A380, the largest passenger jet in the world, in Dubai. The airline topped a list of attractive employers in a recent survey of Gen Y and Gen Z. EPA

The special Emirates A380 will be in service with the Real Madrid decal for six months. Courtesy Emirates

United for Wildlife Emirates A380 before its first flight to London. Courtesy Emirates Airline

An Etihad Airways A380 at the Formula One Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Christopher Pike / The National

A Singapore Airlines Airbus in the snow at JFK, 2018. Reuters

Etihad Airways economy on an A380. Courtesy Etihad

The Lobby of an Etihad Airways A380. AFP

Aermacchi MB-339 jets from UAE's Al-Fursan display team perform with an Airbus A380 from Etihad Airways before the start of the Abu Dhabi Formula One Grand Prix at the Yas Marina circuit. AFP

An Emirates Airbus A380 plane in Beirut, Lebanon. AP Photo

An Emirates Airline A-380 leads UAE's "Al Fursan" aerobatic display team, during the opening day of the Dubai Air Show. AP Photo

The tail of the Airbus A-380 at the 46th Paris Air Show. Getty Images

An Emirates Airbus A380 plane is seen at Nice International airport in Nice, France. REUTERS

An Airbus SAS A380 super jumbo performs a flying display on day two of the 51st International Paris Air Show in Paris, France. Bloomberg

Line Emirates is one of the airlines included in the TSA's emergency order. Courtesy Emirates

Tthe A380 has been Airbus’s flagship project for the past two decades. Bloomberg

A British Airways A380. Courtesy British Airways

<p>A Singapore Airlines Airbus A380&nbsp;at Beijing airport. AFP

New wheels on the Emirates A380. Courtesy Emirates

At Dubai's Miracle Garden, more than five million flowers were grown to produce a full-size Emirates Airbus A380. Courtesy Guinness World Records

Emirates, the largest customer of the Airbus A380, plans to reinstate more of its double-deckers by the end of 2021 and expects continued growth in the second half of its fiscal year, the airline's chairman said.

The airline will return more than 60 of its A380s to the skies, up from 47 superjumbos currently in operation, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed, chairman and chief executive of Emirates airline and group, said at a media briefing at the Dubai Airshow on Monday.

Emirates has gradually been restoring its fleet of 118 superjumbos that was grounded last year by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The airline recorded operating profit in October for the first time since the onset of the pandemic amid a rebound in passenger travel demand and a strong performance from its freight business.

October was a “positive month for Emirates, it was better than expected and I see that is going to continue”, Sheikh Ahmed said.

Emirates has been engaged in “positive” talks with Boeing regarding the delivery time and supply chain for the 777X programme, Sheikh Ahmed said.

“It is positive, it is good, maybe there are certain things I cannot really say at the moment because still we are in that process,” he said. “But I can say it is positive. We [will] focus on the programme delivery.”

Asked whether the airline would also consider a proposed freighter version of the 777X, Sheikh Ahmed declined to comment as discussions with the US plane manufacturer are ongoing.

Emirates also has Airbus A350s on order and Sheikh Ahmed did not rule out potential interest in Airbus's new A350 freighter version.

“Why not? We are looking at all options for the airline,” he said.

Dubai AirShow 2021 Day 2 — in pictures

Cargo constitutes about 30 per cent of Emirates' total revenue and the airline has a large capacity in the belly hold of its all-wide-body fleet.

When asked whether the airline would consider expediting its A350 deliveries if uncertainty persists around the 777X delivery dates, Sheikh Ahmed said Emirates has been in discussions with Airbus regarding its A350 order.

“We've been in good, positive meetings with Boeing on the 777X programme and to be sure on the delivery date and also on the Airbus today with A350. So, we would be talking about what we can expedite. We have many scenarios [to look at]," he said, without elaborating.

Upon being asked if state-owned Emirates could be among the 10 government entities that Dubai plans to list on its bourse, Sheikh Ahmed said: “We have successful businesses within the group that can be [listed].

“We are one of the companies that are owned by the government of Dubai, which announced Dewa and Salik will be the first in the programme. I am sure that the committee headed by Sheikh Maktoum [bin Mohammed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance] would be announcing that in the [coming] days and weeks, so they would be the right people to answer which company.”