2 days Ago By Chad Beach
Airbus confirmed that Emirates currently has 65 Airbus A350-900s on order. The airline was originally expected to begin receiving these aircraft in August 2024. However, due to production delays, the first A350-900 was not delivered to Emirates until the end of November 2024.
Though Emirates expressed concerns in the past about the A350's Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97 engines, those concerns have been overcome as Emirates celebrated the arrival of its new A350 with much fanfare . There has been much anticipation surrounding the introduction of Emirates’ A350s, including when and where Emirates would fly the new aircraft. Simple Flying tapped into Cirium data to find where the aircraft will fly in 2025.
Emirates was supposed to take delivery of its first Airbus A350-900 in August. Services with the type should begin in January 2025. Emirates’ plans for the A350 Emirates expects to receive its remaining 64 Airbus A350-900s over the next three years, ending in 2028.
The current total production rate of Airbus A350s is around five to six a month, so the number of deliveries per year to Emirates will vary. Nonetheless, as more aircraft join the fleet, Emirates will surely introduce more destinations. In 2025, only one route will be served by the A350s in January, but that number is scheduled to increase to nine routes by the end of the year.
The airline touts the comfort and operating efficiency of the aircraft: “The Emirates A350 features three spacious cabin classes, accommodating 312 passengers in 32 next-generation Business Class lie-flat seats, 21 Premium Economy seats and 259 generously pitched Economy Class seats. The latest onboard products reflect the airline’s commitment to delivering a premium passenger experience while optimizing operational efficiency. ” Emirates plans to take delivery of its A350-900s in two configurations.
According to Flight Global , the airline will receive some A350s configured to handle 16-hour missions. These will not be the same as Singapore Airlines Ultra Long Range A350s. Rather, Emirates plans to achieve this range by “ adding a crew-rest area and reducing the overall passenger count to 298.
” AeroLOPA indicates that the first batch of A350-900s will have a business cabin arranged with 32 Safran seats in a 1-2-1 configuration that provides direct aisle access from each seat. These business class seats are lie-flat seats capable of providing 78.6" of resting space.
The aircraft will have 21 RECARO PL3530 seats in the premium economy cabin arranged in a comfortable 2-3-2 configuration. The two economy cabins will feature a combined total of 259 seats arranged in a standard 3-3-3 layout. As previously mentioned, some of the later deliveries are planned to have fewer seats to allow for increased range.
Business Class Premium Economy Economy Class Number of Seats 32 21 259 Seat Pitch 44" 40" 32" Seat Width 20.7" 19.5" 18" Recline 78.
6" lie-flat bed 8" 6" Edinburgh Airport (EDI) Edinburgh Airport (EDI), Scotland, is the first city to receive an Emirates A350 service. This aligns with Emirates' plan to utilize the aircraft on routes and to increase its presence to more destinations that might not suit its larger Boeing 777s or Airbus A380s . Emirates states: “The A350’s introduction will enable Emirates to expand into new destinations globally, including mid-sized airports unsuited for larger aircraft.
” Currently, customers can fly to Edinburgh on one of the airline’s Boeing 777s. However, on January 3rd, 2025, Edinburgh will be the first city to receive Emirates' brand-new Airbus A350. The route is a daily nonstop service from Dubai International Airport (DXB) that departs Dubai at 14:50 local time, arrives in Edinburgh eight hours, and fifteen minutes later at 19:05 local time in Scotland.
Yesterday's arrival marked the airline's first flight to the Scottish capital since 2020. Emirates added four more cities for A350 flights in February As the schedule stands right now, no other cities will see a regularly scheduled A350 service from Emirates in January. However, Ahmedabad, Manama, Mumbai, and Kuwait City will be added to the A350 schedule in February.
All of these destinations will also begin A350 services at the start of the month. Emirates' service to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (AMD) in Ahmedabad, India, is set to begin on February 1st. This will be a daily service offered as Emirates flight EK538 with nonstop service from Dubai, replacing a Boeing 777 on the service.
Interestingly, on the day that the A350 service begins to Ahmedabad, Emirates' schedule shows two flight options, with one service being operated by a 777 and another being operated by an A350. Manama will also see the transition of some flights to A350 equipment, with the first Emirates A350 scheduled to arrive at Bahrain International Airport (BAH) on February 1st. Currently, Emirates serves Bahrain with three daily flights utilizing Boeing 777s.
On February 1st, two of these flights will transition to A350s and remain that way. Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (BOM) will also see the transition of one flight from a Boeing 777 to the new Airbus A350-900s. Currently, the airport hosts three of Emirates’ Boeing 777s and one Airbus A380.
On February 1st, the airline will transition flight EK502 to the A350. This flight departs Dubai at 13:15 local time and arrives in Mumbai at 17:50 local time. It will provide Mumbai with the full scope of aircraft types that Emirates currently operates, with two 777s, one A350, and one A380 serving the city daily.
Later in the year, another flight with 777 equipment will be added to this route, but as the schedule stands right now, EK502 will continue to be operated all year utilizing the A350 fleet. Another destination on Emirates’ extensive route network that will begin to see A350 service in February is Kuwait International Airport (KWI) in Kuwait City. Currently, the airport receives four daily 777 flights from Emirates’ hub in Dubai.
The first A350 from Emirates is scheduled to arrive at, you may have guessed it, February 1st, 2025. Not only will it operate on the first day of the month, but it will also be Emirates’ first flight to Kuwait City from Dubai. The Airbus A350 will replace a Boeing 777 on Emirates’ flight EK853, which is scheduled to depart daily from Dubai at 01:25 and arrive at Kuwait International Airport at 02:15.
Emirates will add four more cities with Airbus A350 service in March Cirium data shows four additional cities will be added to Emirates' A350 schedule in March. Bologna Guglielmo Marconi Airport (BLQ) Bandaranaike International Colombo Airport (CMB) Lyon Saint-Exupéry Airport (LYS) Muscat International Airport (MCT) However, flights to these cities will commence on different dates throughout the month. Bandaranaike International Colombo Airport (CMB) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, will be the first of these airports to receive nonstop service from Dubai, utilizing the Airbus A350.
Emirates plans to start services with the A350 on March 1st. Currently, Emirates serves Colombo with four daily flights utilizing the airline's Boeing 777s. Three of these flights are direct, while one of them serves Colombo via a stop at Malé International Airport (MLE) in the Maldives.
The airline plans to transition flight EK654, currently a nonstop 777 service from Dubai to the A350-900. The next city to receive Emirates’ new A350s will be Bologna, Italy. Currently, the city receives one daily Boeing 777 flight from Dubai.
On March 15th, Emirates will begin to operate the A350 on this route instead of the 777. The nonstop flight (EK093) is scheduled to depart Dubai at 08:55 local time and arrive in Italy six hours and 45 minutes later at 12:40 local time. Customers utilizing Emirates' website can book train connections in Italy.
For example, a customer desiring to travel to Bologna may also utilize one of Emirates A380 or Boeing 777 services to Rome and book a connecting ticket to Bologna on Trenitalia. The next two cities to host Emirates’ A350s are Lyon Saint-Exupéry Airport (LYS) and Muscat International Airport (MCT). Both of these routes are a daily nonstop service from Dubai that will switch from Boeing 777s to Airbus A350s on March 30th.
Emirates' service to Lyon is operated as flight EK081, departing Dubai at 08:35 local time and arriving in Lyons, France, at 12:50 local time. The service to Muscat, Oman, is much shorter, with a flight time of only one hour and fifteen minutes. The A350 flight will be operated as EK866, departing Dubai at 02:15 and arriving in Muscat at 03:30 in the morning.
As with all these flights, the timing is coordinated for a quick return to Dubai. All of these schedules indicate the aircraft departing back to Dubai within a couple of hours of arrival. This maximizes aircraft efficiency and utilization with Emirates and keeps the airline’s global hub in Dubai operating as the one-stop that connects many international city pairs.
A total of nine cities will welcome the Emirates A350 in 2025 As Cirium data and Emirates' booking information projects, these cities make up the nine destinations that will be served by Emirates' new fleet of Airbus A350-900s in the coming year. It is quite remarkable that Emirates plans to have all nine destinations served by the A350 no later than the end of March. Thus, all the anticipation may begin to settle as the new aircraft becomes a part of daily operations at the airline.
With a total of 65 A350s on order, it will continue to be interesting to see what new destinations Emirates chooses to serve with these aircraft as more are delivered over the next few years. After years of expansion, what does the future hold for Emirates? Will the airline continue to grow? Disclaimer: The following is a statement shared by one of our readers and does not necessarily reflect the views or ideas of our publication..
