| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 12/06/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 25 |
| Copyright: Other |
Airline update
Emirates set to increase UK capacity
Report by PAUL NORRIS
Emirates: is looking to operate from a fourth UK airportEMIRATESis to increase its UK capacity this year by taking seats on a partner carrier and launching a new service.
The additional flight, taking Emirates’ UK-Dubai services to six a day, will start at the end of October in time for the winter season. UK and Ireland sales manager Vic Sheppard said the airline is considering launching the new flight from either Gatwick or Manchester, but it is also looking at adding a fourth UK airport to its network.
He said Emirates had been forced to expand away from its main UK airport at Heathrow as there was no space available. “We are looking to launch extra flights from elsewhere in the UK other than Heathrow,” said Sheppard.
The airline currently flies thrice daily from Heathrow and once a day from Gatwick and Manchester. New UK destinations being considered by Emirates are believed to include Birmingham and Stansted. The airline from the United Arab Emirates is to also increase its capacity by taking seats on partner carrier SriLankan Airlines. Two extra weekly flights will start this month from SriLankan and will be codeshared with Emirates to Dubai, before flying on to Colombo. SriLankan currently has a daily non-stop Heathrow service to the Sri Lankan capital.
Emirates will also switch to a Boeing 777 aircraft on the Gatwick-Dubai route this September to give more capacity than the Airbus A330 currently used.
In the long term, Sheppard said Emirates will use the 550-seater Airbus A3XX to boost capacity from the UK. Its Heathrow operation is likely to be the first Emirates route to use the A3XX.
Emirates will receive 10 of the double-decker aircraft from 2005.