Emirates to cancel order for 70 jets: Airbus

Airbus confirms that Emirates airline has decided to cancel its order of 70 A350 XWB aircraft, according to a press statement on Wednesday.

An Emirates airline spokesperson said: “The contract which we signed in 2007 for 70 A350 aircraft has lapsed. We are reviewing our fleet requirements.”

The decision follows on-going discussions with the airline in light of their fleet requirement review, as demonstrated by their order of 50 additional A380 at the last Dubai Airshow and their continuous interest in the programme.

Emirates airline is expected to announce the same in a media statement later.

Airbus and Emirates benefit from a long-standing relationship and the airline recently reiterated its confidence in Airbus products particularly by praising the A380 and the benefits the aircraft brings to their operations.

The order of 50 A350-900 and 20 A350-1000 was originally placed by Emirates Airline in 2007 with first delivery slots scheduled from 2019.

Airbus is very confident in its A350 XWB programme.

Half a year before entry into service, the A350 XWB order book stands at 742 firm orders. The A350 flight test campaign is on track for Type Certification in the coming months.

Airbus said it expects the A350 order book to continue growing in 2014.

Rolls-Royce says order book reduce by 3.5%

Rolls-Royce has been advised by Airbus of the cancellation of an Emirates' order for 70 A350 aircraft, the company said in a statement on its website.

“While disappointed with this decision, we are confident that the delivery slots which start towards the end of this decade vacated by Emirates will be taken up by other airlines. Demand for the Airbus A350 remains strong, with more than 700 aircraft and 1,400 Trent XWB engines already sold.

“We retain a close working relationship with Emirates and continue to support their 38 Rolls-Royce powered wide body aircraft currently in service.”
As a result of today's announcement, Rolls-Royce order book will reduce by around 3.5% or £2.6bn.

The order for 70 A350 aircraft was confirmed in 2007 as part of a larger $8.4bn announcement relating to a total of 120 Aircraft, all with TotalCare services. The options for the additional 50 aircraft, and the TotalCare contracts were not included in the amount captured in our Order Book.

Emirates increases capacity on Boston route

Emirates will be able to connect even more people and cargo with Boston from August 1 when it switches from its Boeing 777-200LR currently operating the route to a larger Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, adding passenger and cargo capacity.

Emirates launched its Boston service - its eighth US gateway - on March 10, 2014. The Boeing 777-300ER will offer 88 additional Economy Class seats, representing a 40% increase in seating. This is in addition to offering customers a choice of eight First Class Suites and 42 Business Class seats.

“Emirates has seen steady growth on our Boston route since its launch only three months ago. We believe this strong demand is thanks to Emirates’ unique product and service which is offered to our customers in all three cabins. This means that in response we are able to introduce the larger Emirates Boeing 777-300ER to New England,” said Hubert Frach, Emirates’ Divisional Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations West.

“The choice of connecting flights to West Asia, the Middle East, Far East and Africa via our home and hub in Dubai means our passengers travelling to and from Boston can enjoy unparalleled connectivity to over 140 destinations on Emirates’ global network, and also reinforces our confidence in the continued growth in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.” 

Emirates introduces the world’s first ''Pele-ane'' to its fleet of Boeing 777s

Emirates, an Official FIFA Worldwide Partner, is pleased to unveil the first Boeing 777-300ER to feature the distinguishable signature of Emirates’ Global Ambassador and three times World Cup winner, Pele, just hours before the first World Cup match kicks off in Brazil.

The first Emirates ''Pele-ane'' will be connecting football fans with the action this summer on the Dubai to Sao Paolo route. Identifiable from the ground or the air, the 350-seater aircraft now has a creative design, specific to the FIFA World Cup , emblazoned on the fuselage along with the recognisable signature of the legendary Brazilian football great. Two further Boeing 777 Pele-ane’s will be unveiled on the day of the opening match and one Airbus A380 is expected launch shortly afterwards. 115 Boeing 777 from the Emirates fleet, which will fly football fans to Brazil, will also carry a large 2014 FIFA World Cup logo.

Those passengers lucky enough to be travelling to Brazil, or any of the other 142 destinations served by Emirates, can also experience different facets of the tournament in a number of ways: at the airline’s hub in Dubai, where check-in desks now prominently feature the hero image from the Emirates #AllTimeGreats commercial featuring Pele and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Live on 16 Emirates Boeing 777 aircraft from 12th June to 13th July, passengers can watch all 64 matches ‘as live’ on the Sport 24 channel. This capability means that not even a flight can get in the way of a football fan’s passion. Or if watching the whole match is too much, one of the seven rolling news channels can keep everyone up to date with the goals.

To keep the children on board entertained, Emirates will be providing colourful snack boxes with cardboard cut-outs and stylish wrist bands in support of participating teams.

The Emirates World Cup initiatives will be on flights for the duration of the tournament starting from today, 11th June. The airline expects to fly over 18,000 passengers on its daily flights to Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paolo over the World Cup period.

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.