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Dubai’s Emirates Airline is to resume its daily service to Adelaide in October, restoring its Australia service fully for the first time since the global COVID-19 pandemic.
The airline said the move was a major milestone for South Australia’s pandemic recovery, delivering $160 million per year to the state in tourism expenditure and freight exports.
By December 2024, Emirates will return to its pre-pandemic capacity offering 77 weekly services to Australia or up to 68,000 passengers per week to and from Australia, a statement said.
Emirates first launched its Adelaide services in 2012 and carried more than 165,000 passengers between Dubai and Adelaide in 2019.
The tourism expenditure of daily direct non-stop Emirates’ flights is estimated by South Australian Tourism Commission to generate more than $62 million per year. The value of freight exports is estimated to be $98 million per year.
The route will be served by a Boeing 777-200LR aircraft, a wide body aircraft which Adelaide Airport Managing Director, Brenton Cox, said creates improved air freight export opportunities for local producers to Middle Eastern and European markets.
From 1 December, Emirates will reinstate its second Perth service, bringing the airline’s Australia capacity back to pre-pandemic levels for the first time.
(Writing by Imogen Lillywhite; editing by Brinda Darasha)
