Emirates has officially unveiled its first Airbus A350! The carrier took delivery of its new Airbus A350-900, registered as A6-EXA, yesterday and now we have more information on the cabins and its entry into revenue service.
The unveiling was led by Sir Tim Clark, President Emirates Airline in the presence of His Excellency Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri, UAE Minister of Economy, and was attended by VIP guests, aerospace partners, government officials and dignitaries, members of the media (not me), as well as aviation enthusiasts. His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Airline & Group, had this to say about the unveiling:
“Today is an exciting milestone for Emirates as we showcase our first A350 and usher in a new era for our fleet and network growth. This aircraft sets the stage for Emirates to spread its wings farther by offering added range, efficiency and flexibility to our network, enabling us to meet customer demand in new markets and unlock new opportunities in the cities that we serve. Onboard, our updated interiors and seating configurations will help us deliver a more elevated and comfortable experience to travellers across every cabin class.”
Guests at the event were able to experience the aircraft’s interiors and see firsthand how the Dubai based carrier chose to outfit the next generation of aircraft to wear the Emirates branding. The A350 is the first new fleet type for the airline since 2008.
Onboard the Emirates Airbus A350
With the first new fleet type in more than 15 years, Emirates is rolling out some new features and upgrading some existing ones. This includes everything from onboard storage, to Wi-Fi and Emirates ICE (the inflight infotainment system).
The carrier’s new Airbus A350s will be equipped with a three-cabin layout consisting of Business Class, Premium Economy, and Economy cabins. This layout will be present on all 65 of the A350-900s ordered by Emirates, so no First Class seats will be available on these planes.
Emirates A350 Business Class
Emirates went with a familiar option for Business Class on the A350. While some hoped that the carrier would roll out a new product, I speculated that the airline would use a modified version of the Business Class seat that is currently being retrofitted onto its Boeing 777 fleet.
Business Class consists of 32 seats, arranged in a 1-2-1 configuration, which are inspired by the Mercedes-Benz S Class according to the airline. The A350 will receive some new additions in Business Class which includes wireless charging on the side cocktail table and in-seat lighting controls with 5 streams of light.
The ICE infotainment system in Business Class uses a 20″, 4k seatback screen. A small minibar with two snacks and drinks are also located at each seat. An additional display area for complimentary snacks is also located at the rear of the cabin.
Emirates A350 Premium Economy
Emirates plans to install Premium Economy on all of its A350-900s. The cabins will range in size from 21 to 28 seats and are arranged in a 2-3-2 layout. Premium Economy was introduced on Emirates back in 2022 so the product is still relatively new.
The Premium Economy seat features a 13.3 inch ICE screen, side cocktail table (though these are shared between seats, and in-seat charging. Passengers in Premium Economy can also expect exclusive food, beverage, and service offerings compared to Economy.
Emirates A350 Economy
The Economy cabin on the A350-900 will feature up to 259 seats arranged in the standard 3-3-3 layout that you’ll find on the A350 (some ULCCs squeeze 10 abreast seating on the A350). Like the Premium Economy cabin, Economy seats have a 13.3 inch ICE seatback entertainment screen.
Emirates’ Economy cabin on the A350 has a few noticeable improvements when compared to the previous iteration of the cabins on older Airbus A380 and Boeing 777 models. The first thing you’ll notice are new seat coverings which feature tan and light blue fabrics.
Finally, a new 6-way adjustable headrest is being introduced to the Economy cabin in early 2025. This seems similar to what currently exists in Premium Economy but, based on the wording in the press release, this may be a new headrest entirely. According to the airline, the new headrest should eliminate the need for neck pillows in Economy.
Emirates’ First A350 Destinations
Emirates initially planned to place the A350 into revenue service earlier in the year. However, delivery delays pushed back the expected launch to January 15th. Now, it seems that we have a definitive timeline for the A350’s introduction into revenue service.
According to the airline, it plans to conduct the first revenue flight between Dubai International Airport (DXB) and Edinburgh Airport (EDI) on January 3rd. EK 23 will depart Dubai at 2:50p local time and arrive in Edinburgh at 7:05p local time. The plane will depart Edinburgh as EK 24 at 8:40p and arrive back in Dubai at 8:05a on January 4th. Tickets for the inaugural flight are currently available at Emirates.com.
After Edinburgh, Emirates plans to deploy the A350 on routes to Bahrain (BAH), Kuwait City (KWI), Muscat (MCT), Mumbai (BOM), Ahmedabad (AMD), Colombo (CMB), Lyon (LYS), and Bologna (BLQ) from its Dubai hub.
Summary
Emirates has unveiled new details about its fleet of Airbus A350-900 aircraft. With 65 in total joining the carrier’s fleet over the next few years, it is somewhat surprising that the airline elected not to install First Class on any of these planes. However, I’m not surprised to see them select Business Class, Premium Economy, and Economy cabins that are in line with what you’ll find on the rest of the carrier’s fleet.
Emirates’ first destination with the A350 will be to Edinburgh before rolling out to more destinations through the first half of 2025. While there isn’t anything cutting edge about Emirates’ A350s in particular, they are the last of the big three Gulf carriers that I need to try so I’m looking for any reason to hop on board.
What did you expect for Emirates’ A350s?
(Images courtesy Emirates)