More than 160,000 passengers upgraded from Economy to Emirates’ premium offering during the course of the year, according to a review of the airline’s first year of full-service operations with its Premium Economy class.
In August 2022, the airline’s Premium Economy seating was introduced.
The airline added in a press release on August 2, 2023 that within the same time period, cabin workers served more than 192,000 meals and more than
Currently, 14 of the 20 Emirates Airbus A380s that have had Premium Economy seats modified by the airline’s own maintenance department, Emirates Engineering, are Airbus A380s.
There are 11 locations available for passengers wishing to travel the double-decker aircraft in a Premium Economy seat, including four in the United States, London Heathrow Airport (LHR), Singapore Changi Airport (SIN), and four in Australia and New Zealand.
By the end of 2023, Emirates will introduce flights from Dubai International Airport (DXB) to Bengaluru Kempegowda International Airport (BLR) and Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (BOM) with A380s fitted with the fancier economy seats. The airline noted that additional destinations “will be announced soon”.
“Since Emirates debuted its Premium Economy Class, customer response has been overwhelmingly positive with demand exceeding expectations and bookings growing month on month, demonstrating its appeal to a broad range of traveler segments who want to try out its understated luxury and meticulously elevated experience at a great value,” the airline said.
According to Emirates, 50% of travelers using Premium Economy are traveling alone, while the other half are families.
Additionally, 60% of Emirates’ Premium Economy passengers are members of the loyalty program Emirates Skywards.
Emirates teased that Premium Economy will feature “luxurious seats, more legroom, and a service to rival many airlines’ business offering” when it first debuted the cabin in May 2022.
“As with everything we do, Emirates Premium Economy will be exceptional in its class, with minute attention given to every aspect of the customer experience,” Tim Clark, the president of Emirates, said in May 2022.
Clark added that since the airline introduced the cabin in January 2021, “the positive response and demand” was “tremendous” at the time.
Part of the airline’s multi-billion dollar refurbishment initiative, which intends to modernize the interiors of 67 Airbus A380 and 53 Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, is the addition of a Premium Economy class.
By the end of the program, engineers will install approximately 4,000 Premium Economy seats, 700 First Class seats, and 5,000 Business Class seats with the most modern interiors, according to Emirates.
Photo Cover Credit: Emirates Airlines
