Mexico City, Mexico: Emirates has launched a daily Dubai-Mexico City route via Barcelona, with the inaugural Emirates flight EK255 from Dubai landing at Mexico City International Airport on December 9 (Mexico time).
The flight, with a group of VIP guests and media onboard, was welcomed with a water cannon salute. Headed by Salem Obaidalla, Emirates Senior Vice-President, Commercial Operations, America’s, the flight marked the start of Mexico City joining the growing list of Emirates destinations.
In an interview during the inaugural flight, Obaidalla said, “Emirates is the first Middle East carrier operating from Middle East to Mexico. After our study, we saw that Mexico was not tapped by any Middle East carrier.
“We saw the opportunity to go and enter that market and there is a huge business for both passenger and cargo that will add more revenue for our company. And on top of that one, it will link Dubai with Mexico City via Barcelona.”
Barcelona link
Emirates’ new passenger service to Mexico City will be linked with Barcelona. Citizens of Mexico, Spain and the UAE only need their passports to enjoy visa-free travel to any of the three countries.
Obaidalla explained that it was not possible to operate a non-stop flight from Dubai due to the high altitude of Mexico City airport, and Barcelona was a natural choice for a stopover.
The new route will be operated with newly refurbished two-class Emirates Boeing 777-200LR, which offers 38 business class seats in a 2-2-2 configuration and 264 seats in Economy Class.
Highlighting the importance of this new gateway in the Americas, Obaidalla shares that both countries has something more to offer. “Mexico has great historical sites. They have nice places for tourists. Dubai also has a lot of things to offer.”
The new 777 flight will also offer up to 14 tonnes of cargo, opening up access to more global markets for Mexican exports such as avocados, berries, mangoes, automotive parts and medical supplies.
