The begin of July marks the start of a serious mission for Emirates. This week, the service will kick off a serious, nose-to-tail cabin face-lift for its Boeing 777 fleet.
These retrofits will carry a myriad of inside enhancements to the jets. Most notably, dozens of Emirates 777s will lastly get a premium economy cabin — to not point out some much-needed upgrades to their business-class cabins.
The first refitted Emirates 777 will launch in early August, Emirates introduced Monday. The refurbished cabin will seem on the airline’s Aug. 11 nonstop flights (EK83/84) from Dubai International Airport (DXB) to Geneva Airport (GVA).
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With every 777 refurbishment more likely to take about two weeks, two different overhauled 777s are anticipated to enter service by mid-September. They will initially function the airline’s nonstop Dubai service to Tokyo’s Haneda Airport (HND) on Sept. 1 (EK312/313) and Brussels Airport (BRU) on Sept. 11 (EK183/184).
Major retrofit plans
These cabin overhauls are a part of a a lot bigger inside refit program the Dubai-based service has deliberate.
In May, TPG reported 81 of the airline’s 777s, together with 110 of its Airbus A380s, will get cabin face-lifts over the approaching years as half of a bigger $2 billion funding.
Revamped 777 cabin
To associate with a refurbished first-class cabin, Emirates’ new 777 business-class cabin will embrace 38 new business-class seats. Notably, they will be organized in 1-2-1 configuration, every with direct aisle entry.
That’s a big enchancment over the 2-3-2 configuration you will discover on many 777 jets these days — like this present 777-300ER business-class cabin map.
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Each cabin on the refitted 777s might be “borrowing inspiration” from the airline’s flagship A380, the service mentioned Monday.
That features a staggered configuration within the business-class cabin, which you will discover as we speak on Emirates’ flagship superjumbos.
“The champagne leather seats match the ones on our latest Emirates A380, with their detailed stitching and soft cushioned headrests,” an Emirates spokesperson advised TPG Monday.
Related: Getting my cash’s value in Emirates top notch: Bottomless Champagne and limitless caviar
Each seat within the business-class cabin will characteristic a touchscreen and seat-controlled inflight leisure heart for the 23-inch show, and passengers can have entry to a small bar for midflight snacks and refreshments.
Meanwhile, the jets can even characteristic 24 premium economy seats — including a cabin not one of the service’s 777s presently supply. But Emirates’ premium economy cabin on the A380 has been extremely regarded, successful on the TPG Awards in 2023.
Fleet overhaul timeline
Currently, Emirates flies premium economy cabins on its already-retrofitted A380s to a number of U.S. airports, including New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH).
The airline hopes to serve 36 cities globally with refurbished cabins (including the premium economy possibility) by February 2025, Emirates leaders say.
Along with upgrading the cabins on its 777s and A380s, Emirates’ fleet is getting one other enhance, with its first Airbus A350 anticipated to take flight in September, the corporate famous Monday.
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