United Arab Emirates (UAE) carrier Emirates Airline is to introduce flights to Conakry, the capital city of Guinea from the start of the Northern winter schedule in late October 2013. The West African city will be linked to the carrier’s existing four times weekly service between its Dubai International Airport hub and the Senegalese capital, Dakar and will provide new opportunities for business and leisure travellers in Guinea to connect to destinations in China, the Middle East, India, Far East and Australia.

“The linking of Conakry takes the number of Emirates destinations in Africa to 24, which is a firm demonstration of our commitment to Africa and helping unlock its enormous potential as one of the fastest growing economic regions of the world,” said Hubert Frach, Divisional Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations West, Emirates Airline.

“Guinea is a developing economy and has a strong mining sector, and by linking Conakry to the Dakar route, it will help to support business, international trade and passenger travel to and from the country.”

Hubert Frach
Divisional Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations West, Emirates Airline

Conakry is the largest city of Guinea in West Africa. It’s situated on the Atlantic Ocean and serves as the economic, financial and cultural centre of the country with an estimated population of 1.5 million people. “Guinea is a developing economy and has a strong mining sector, and by linking Conakry to the Dakar route, it will help to support business, international trade and passenger travel to and from the country,” added Frach.

The Dubai to Dakar route was serviced by an Airbus A330-200 aircraft, but since March 31, 2013 a slightly larger A340-300 was introduced onto the route, ahead of the Conakry launch. The aircraft is configured with 267 seats in a three–class configuration offering 12 luxurious First Class seats, 42 seats in Business Class and 213 passengers in Economy Class.

In addition to passenger services, Emirates SkyCargo will offer about 13 tonnes of cargo capacity per flight, supporting Guinea’s key exports of perishables, such as fresh fish and pineapples, rock and oil samples and general cargo, and imports of textiles, mobile phones and electronics, mining equipment and machinery.