Emirates becomes first to fly Airbus A380 to new Jeddah terminal

Dubai: An Emirates' A380 landed in Saudi Arabia’s newly-built airport terminal in Jeddah, becoming the first carrier to operate the jumbo aircraft there. The flight - EK 2803 - touched down at 18:10 hours on Monday and was greeted with a water cannon salute.

For the trip, Emirates deployed its newest A380 airplane, with premium economy seats on board. "Moving to Terminal 1 represents a significant improvement in the customer experience - customers will have access to world-class amenities,” said Mohammed Alnahari Alhashmi, Vice-President, Commercial Operations at Emirates.

One of Saudi Arabia's largest airport infrastructure projects, the King Abdulaziz International Airport’s new Terminal 1 has the capacity for 30 million passengers a year, combining both domestic and international flights. It can also accommodate up to 70 aircraft simultaneously, including the A380.