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Almost four years after cancelling a direct service from Adelaide to Dubai due to COVID, Emirates has announced plans to resume a daily service to the South Australian capital in October this year.
The service will deliver an additional 4,200 seats a week into Adelaide to facilitate an estimated $160 million in tourism expenditure and freight exports while also boosting jobs.
Emirates, which first launched direct flights into the city in 2012 and abandoned them in March 2020, will service the route with a Boeing 777-200LR offering 38 business class seats and 264 economy seats daily.
The return of Emirates, which has been facilitated by Adelaide Airport in conjunction with the South Australian Tourism Commission, will boost the number of international airlines flying into Adelaide to 10.
“This is a major recovery milestone for our state’s tourism industry, providing a crucial link into South Australia’s traditionally strong European markets, as well as the UK, Middle East, India, and the east coast of the US,” says Zoe Bettison, South Australia’s Minister for Tourism and Multicultural Affairs.
“The reinstatement of direct daily Emirates flights into Adelaide is expected to generate more than $62 million in tourism expenditure alone – a major boost to our state’s visitor economy.”
Emirates’ divisional vice president for Australasia, Barry Brown, says the Adelaide service will complete the airline’s footprint in Australia to service five cities nationally – adding to existing services in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth.
“The return of Emirates to Adelaide has been highly anticipated by passengers and industry for some time,” says Brown.
“We are equally as excited to again service South Australia and provide the state with opportunities across leisure, culture and tourism and support trade growth opportunities through our connection to Dubai and onwards to destinations worldwide.”
Adelaide Airport managing director Brendon Cox says the new service will deliver more competition and choice for passengers, including Emirates’ code-sharing arrangement with Qantas, connecting through the Middle East to Europe and Africa.
“Equally it creates significant tourism and wider economic opportunities in attracting international visitors to Adelaide,” says Cox.
“The widebody Boeing 777-200LR aircraft also creates improved air freight export opportunities for our local producers to Middle Eastern and European markets.”
Each flight will have 14 tonnes of cargo space, which will add capacity for 196 tonnes a week between Dubai and Adelaide and facilitate $98 million in freight exports a year.
The South Australian Government also estimates the new Emirates service will create more than 315 full-time equivalent tourism-related jobs for the state.
Emirates plans to resume its service into Adelaide on 28 October with its flight schedule connecting passengers with Emirates’ prime European arrival and departure times.
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