Dubai: People travelling from Dubai to Pakistan and back will soon experience what it’s like to fly aboard Emirates’ A380 aircraft, the world’s largest commercial passenger plane.
The UAE-based carrier announced on Tuesday that it will operate a one-off A380 flight to Islamabad next week.
The first Emirates double-decker plane to fly to the Asian country will make its inaugural trip to Islamabad on a special flight EK2524/EK2525 on Sunday, July 8, 2018.
The move, which may later pave the way for a regular deployment of the flagship plane to Pakistan, is meant to showcase Emirates’ products aboard the iconic aircraft. The airline has confirmed that it intends to make make the A380 service permanent.
"We are excited that after more than 30 years of operations that the iconic flagship A380 is being brought to Pakistan and we are working with the authorities to make this a permanent flight," a spokesperson told Gulf News.
“We are very keen to launch a scheduled A380 service to Pakistan and will continue to work with authorities to realise these plans,” said Shaikh Majid Al Mualla, divisional senior vice president commercial operations centre, Emirates.
Pakistan is one of the biggest sources of tourists in Dubai. In 2017, some 598 million Pakistani tourists landed in the emirate.
The airline has been serving the Pakistani market for more than 30 years now, or since its first plane landed in Karachi on October 25, 1985.
There are about 400,000 Pakistani travellers who are part of the airline’s loyalty programme, the Emirates Skywards.
The A380 flight will depart Dubai at 8am and arrive in Islamabad at 12.10pm on July 8. On return, the plane will leave Islamabad at 3.40pm and arrive in Dubai at 5.45pm on the same day.
“We are proud to bring our flagship A380 aircraft to Islamabad, and we look forward to showcasing our innovative products on-board this iconic aircraft with the signature Emirates service,” said Al Mualla.
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