Irish Eyes Smile on Emirates' Inaugural Arrival

Posted 10/01/2012

Emirates Airline inaugurated flights from its Dubai International Airport base to Dublin in the Republic of Ireland on January 9, 2012, its 119 global destination.  The route launch follows just a week after the carrier began flights to Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires, expanding its footprint in South America.

The new Dubai – Dublin route is being flown with a three-class Airbus A330-200 and its launch comes around ten years after Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) first approached the Gulf carrier to start flying to the Irish capital. 

“We first began talking to Emirates about the possibility of operating this service about 10 years ago,” Declan Collier, said Chief Executive Officer, Dublin Airport Authority (DAA).  “During the past decade we’ve kept in touch, informing them of developments in the Irish market and the new facilities that we have put in place to improve the passenger experience at Dublin Airport. This new service is the fruit of that long relationship and the hard work of many people both here in Dublin and in Dubai.”

Declan Collier also described the new route as a major vote of confidence in the Irish economy.  “I’m sure that this new daily service is merely the beginning of what promises to be a long and very successful partnership between Dublin Airport and Emirates.  Additional direct services and enhanced connectivity is the lifeblood of tourism and business and this new service will be hugely beneficial for the Irish economy,” he added.

The route will bring new opportunities for travel into the Middle East and wider global network of Emirates Airline from its Dubai International Airport hub.  Meanwhile, the Republic is a popular international tourist destination and last year received 6.7 million visitors, drawn by the rich ancient history, spectacular countryside, traditional Irish music, thousands of miles of scenic coastline and renowned fresh air.

According to the airline the route has already secured “solid early bookings” and although plans to switch the operating aircraft to a larger Airbus A340-300 have been delayed from October 2012 to February 2013, there is every chance the route could be further upgraded to a Boeing 777-300ER by the end of next year.

Ireland has a population of around 4.5 million, while around 5,000 Irish nationals live in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) so a relatively strong Point-to-point demand is anticipated on the route.  However, around 80,000 more live in Australia, which Emirates identifies as a “key market” for the new service: more than 70 passengers on the 237-seat inaugural flight came from bookings in Australia, according to the carrier.

Dublin is already linked to the UAE by Etihad Airways which offers ten flights per week to Abu Dhabi, while Aer Lingus has also served the Dublin – Dubai route in the past.  An estimated 54,000 O&D passengers travelled between Ireland and UAE in the past year with around 18,000 travelling on the direct Etihad service.  Emirates already holds a 9.9 per cent share of this traffic with around 5,000 O&D passengers flying to Dubai via its UK destinations.  But, as mentioned previously, this route is more than just about O&D passengers.  Alongside its 18,000 point-to-point passengers, Etihad carried an estimated 160,000 passengers to other destinations in its global network – the main markets being Sydney, Australia; Kochi, India; and Bangkok, Thailand.

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