Emirates, the Dubai-based international airline equipped with one of the most modern fleets in the world, has received all ten of the Airbus A340-500s it has ordered.
Emirates has invested close to $2 billion (gross order value) in its A340-500 fleet.
The financing was obtained from well diversified sources 29 per cent from European banks, 10 per cent from Islamic sources, 24 per cent from commercial banks in the GCC and 37 per cent from commercial banks outside the GCC a substantial portion of which came from banks in Japan and China.
The company in a statement said that with a fleet average age of 56 months, the company aimed to focus on medium and long-haul routes.
The airline has constantly upgraded its fleet to include aircraft with greater capacity and longer range, it said.
Emirates has firm orders for 30 Boeing B777-300 Extended Range aircraft, of which five are already in service, and the others will join the airline's rapidly-expanding fleet by the end of 2007.
Shaikh Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation and Chairman of Emirates Group, said: "The presence of longer range aircraft in our fleet reflects our business strategy which focuses on medium and long-haul routes.
"Taking advantage of the range that such aircraft offer, Emirates has successfully redrawn the world's air routes, opening up new non-stop services such as Dubai-Australia and Dubai-North America.
"The quantum leap for Emirates came when it became the first airline in the world to operate the ultra-long range Airbus A340-500.
"The world's longest-range, large passenger jet in service, the Airbus A340-500 powered by four Rolls-Royce Trent 500 engines is able to fly between any two places on the globe with no more than a single stop."
On December 1, 2003, the airline's first Airbus A340-500 made its maiden flight Dubai to Sydney non-stop with a flying time of less than 14 hours. The airline today operates its A340-500 aircraft to Sydney-Christchurch, Melbourne-Auckland, Osaka and New York.
The delivery of the tenth A340-500 aircraft will allow Emirates to launch its second daily non-stop service to New York on November 16.
The Emirates fleet currently stands at 81 aircraft comprising 29 Airbus A330-200s, 12 Boeing 777-300s, nine Boeing 777-200s, 10 Airbus 340-500s, eight A340-300s, five Boeing 777-300ERs, one Airbus A310, one Airbus A310F and six Boeing 747 freighters.
The airline's impressive order book worth almost $30 billion in list prices consists of 92 aircraft 45 Airbus A380-800s (including two A380Fs), 25 Boeing 777-300ERs plus nine options, two A310-300Fs and 20 Airbus A340-600 Higher Gross Weight aircraft.
The delivery of the tenth A340-500 will allow Emirates to begin operating its second daily non-stop service to New York on November 16. Emirates has invested close to $2 billion in its A340-500 fleet.
Gulf News
