Emirates is to open its new premium economy cabin for sale on 1 June when it will be available on A380 flights from London and Paris departing from August.
The Dubai-based carrier first unveiled its premium economy seats in early 2021 but they were initially used as a “complimentary upgrade” for regular passengers.
Emirates has now launched its full premium economy product for sale from the start of next month for flights departing from 1 August.
The airline made the announcement on Monday (9 May) at Arabian Travel Market in Dubai and becomes the first major carrier in the Middle East to offer premium economy.
The new cabin class will initially be available on “high-traffic” A380 routes from London Heathrow, Paris Charles de Gaulle and Sydney for departures from August onwards, before being introduced on flights to Christchurch in New Zealand from December.
Tim Clark, president of Emirates Airline, said that customers trading up from economy to premium economy will be “getting excellent value”.
“Since we first introduced our premium economy seats in January 2021, the positive response and demand has been tremendous,” added Clark.
Emirates currently only has six A380s equipped with premium economy seating, which “limits our initial deployment”, said Clark.
“But our intention is to offer this experience to many more markets across our network,” he explained. “This November, we will begin our retrofit programme to install premium economy on 67 A380s and 53 Boeing 777s.”
Emirates will eventually have 126 aircraft fitted with premium economy cabins by the end of this retrofitting programme.
Passengers flying premium economy will benefit from a dedicated check-in area at Dubai International airport, while the seats offer a seat pitch of 40 inches and a recline of eight inches. They also feature a 13.3-inch entertainment screen.
On a four-class A380, the Emirates’ premium economy cabin will be located at the front of the main deck with 56 seats in a 2-4-2 configuration.