Emirates becomes world’s largest Boeing 777 operator

Emirates is now the world’s largest airline operator of Boeing 777 aircraft with the arrival of its 78th Boeing 777 on Thursday.

Emirates has another 28 Boeing 777s pending delivery, worth over US$ 7 billion at list prices, and it is also the only airline to operate every model in the Boeing 777 family: -200s, -200ERs, -200LRs, -300s, -300ERs and freighters. The newest addition to the Emirates fleet is a Boeing 777-300ER configured for long distance journeys.

Tim Clark, President Emirates Airline said: “The 777s form the backbone of our fleet, and we have configured these aircraft to give us maximum flexibility in terms of route deployment. Emirates’ 777s today fly to six continents from our Dubai hub, operating routes within a two-hour distance to long-range journeys of 16 hours non-stop.”

Emirates recently completed an upgrading programme for its existing 777 fleet, and now all of its 777 aircraft boast the ice (information, communication, entertainment) system, which offers passengers in all cabin classes a choice of  up to 1,200 channels of the latest movies, TV programming, music and games on demand.

The airline’s long-range 777s have also been equipped with onboard products including private suites in First Class, lie-flat massage seats in Business Class, and ergonomically designed seats in Economy Class.

Emirates received its first 777, a Boeing 777-200, in 1996.