Emirates signs Dh47.7bn deal with GE

Emirates airline signed a 12-year OnPointSM solution agreement with GE for the maintenance, repair and overhaul of its new GE9X engines that will power its 150 Boeing 777X aircraft.

The OnPoint solution agreement is valued at more than $13 billion (Dh47.7 bilion).

The OnPoint solution agreement is part of the finalization of Emirates airline’s record commitment for 150 Boeing 777X twin-engine aircraft, powered by GE’s new GE9X engine. The agreement for the 300 GE9X engines announced at the 2013 Dubai Air Show is worth more than $15 billion list price. With this agreement, GE Aviation secured its largest ever commercial jet engine award from an airline.

“The relationship between GE and Emirates continues to grow with the recent GE9X commitments,” said David Joyce, president and CEO of GE Aviation.

“The OnPoint solution agreement will allow us to provide comprehensive MRO support along with OEM parts and workscopes to ensure the engines remain in peak operating condition.”

Emirates is the world’s largest operator of GE90-powered Boeing 777-300ERs, with 96 aircraft in fleet and another 56 pending delivery.

Emirates also operates the largest fleet of A380s powered by the GP7200 engine produced by the Engine Alliance, a joint company of GE Aviation and Pratt & Whitney. But the relationship between GE Aviation and Emirates over the past decade has extended beyond the delivery and support of jet engines.

Emirates to launch fourth daily flight to Johannesburg in October

Emirates today announced that it will introduce a fourth daily flight between Dubai and Johannesburg this October, lifting the number of daily flights to South Africa to seven.

The addition brings Emirates’ total number of permanent flights between the two countries to 49 a week.

Operated by a B777-300ER, EK767 features 354 seats in a three-class configuration - eight seats in First Class, 42 in Business Class and 304 in Economy Class.

"The introduction of the fourth daily service between Dubai and Johannesburg is a reflection of the growing passenger demand for flights between these two important business and tourism hubs. The increased frequency gives our customers greater flexibility in their travel plans and enhances connectivity to other flights on the Emirates’ network through the Dubai hub," said Orhan Abbas, Emirates Senior Vice-President, Commercial Operations, Latin America, Central and Southern Africa.

"We have seen a healthy increase year-on-year in passenger numbers on the route. Johannesburg remains an important gateway for in bound traffic from the U.K., U.S.A., Germany France, GCC, Iraq and Perth, with outbound traffic connecting to India, Pakistan, Singapore, Malaysia, Bangkok and Jordan, Qatar and Iran in the Middle East."

"The increased capacity demonstrates our commitment to South Africa and our confidence in the strength of the market. With 49 weekly flights to South Africa, Emirates is well positioned to connect global businesses as well as leisure travellers to the continent’s most exuberant economy and exciting travel destination," he concluded.

Emirates and South African Airways will extend its code-share partnership to include the brand new service between Dubai and Johannesburg. The expansion of the code-share agreement is a reflection of the successful and long-standing partnership between the two carriers which are working on key commercial initiatives together.

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