In a few days time, Emirates will begin flying a service from Dubai to Cairo on its A380, making it the first commercial airline to fly a scheduled A380 service into Egypt.

The flight details

The Middle Eastern airline today announced that starting 2nd October 2019 it will fly an A380 service on one of its three daily trips to Cairo from Dubai. The service will run as follows:

  • Departure from Dubai International Airport (DXB) at 08:15 to arrive in Cairo International Airport (CAI) at 10:00.
  • Departure from Cairo International Airport (CAI) at 13:15 to arrive in Dubai International Airport (DXB) at 18:45.

Currently, this service is being flown by one of Emirates 144 commercial Boeing 777 aircraft. The upgrade to the A380 will allow Egyptian passengers to enjoy the comforts of the A380 experience and, no doubt, make the route even more profitable.

Bringing luxury to Egyptian passengers

The flight will be in a three-class configuration offering 426 economy seats, 76 flat-bed seats in business class and 14 first class suites. The service will be flown as EK 927 and EK 928.

Passengers on the service will be able to benefit from a range of luxuries aboard the new flight including an onboard lounge for first class and business class customers. First class passengers will also be able to enjoy the added benefit of two shower spas.

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Actual working showers onboard passenger planes? Yes, really. Photo: Emirates 

All passengers will also benefit from the standard treatment of the Emirates high-life including WiFi, complimentary meals and beverages and extensive entertainment options.

Where do Emirates' loyalties lie?

Emirates also recently announced that it would be upgrading its A380 to include Premium Economy whilst it waits for an order of Boeing 777X aircraft.

In 2013, it became the launch customer for the 777X model with an order of 150 at the Dubai Air Show. But, it's still waiting for its first delivery and thinks it unlikely that it will receive the aircraft before next summer.

Could the A380 debut on Emirates' Cairo service suggest that the airline is taking its loyalties away from Boeing?

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Emirates looking to maintain a close relationship with Egypt via its A380 service. Photo: Emirates

But Emirates doesn't seem to suggest any of this in its press release. It says its relationship with Egypt is what it most wants to maintain. Chief Operating Officer at Emirates, Adel Al Redha, said:

 “Our close relationship with Egypt spans over 30 years and we reaffirm our commitment to the country by operating our iconic A380 to Cairo."

Special relationship with Egypt

Although Emirates recently announced that it would be downsizing its A380 fleet to around 100 aircraft by the middle of 2020, it wants to make an impact whilst the aircraft is still in its fleet.

In the press release, Adel Al Redha, also went on to say:

“ We are setting the stage to make the popular A380 experience a part of our scheduled service to Cairo. Egypt has always been a significant destination for us in the region, and we are humbled to be able to play a role in making aviation history in Egypt.”

The airline also went further to remark on how to Emirate-Egypt relationship has grown since it started offering flights to Cairo back in 1986. Around 2% of its staff are Egyptian nationals and there are 21 flights per week that fly between Dubai and Cairo.

Will you be flying the new route from Dubai to Cairo? Do you have any memorable trips on the A380 with Emirates? Let us know in the comments!