Emirates has announced today the inauguration of
the the departure today of an Airbus A380 flight from the new and
purpose-built A380 concourse at Dubai International Airport.
Part
of the airport's Terminal 3 complex, Concourse A will become the "home
of the Emirates A380", passengers will connect to more than 20 Emirates
A380 destinations, including A380 flights to Europe on Australian
airline, Qantas, in terms of the global partnership announced recently
which is pending the approval of the Australian Competition and Consumer
Commission.
The departure of flight EK003 at 14h30 to London
Heathrow marked the start of flights from four gates which opened at
Concourse A. This also forms part of on-going operational trials and
testing before it officially opens and becomes fully operational during
the first quarter this year.
"This is an historic and momentous
occasion, marking another world first from Emirates. The new A380 hub is
another example of Emirates being a leader in providing innovative
products and services that give customers an unsurpassed travel
experience," said Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, president of the
Dubai Department of Civil Aviation, chairman and chief executive,
Emirates Airline and Group and Chairman of Dubai Airports. “We are
confident that our customers will find the new concourse to be a
remarkable world class facility befitting of our flagship Emirates A380
aircraft." “I would also like to congratulate Dubai Airports on
achieving this major milestone in the development of Concourse A."
With
528,000 m2 spread across eleven floors and the capacity to handle 15
million passengers a year, the concourse o The concourse also offers a
hotel floor with both a four and five star facilities. Passengers are
transported between Terminal 3 and Concourse A by underground trains and
shuttle buses from where they can depart through 20 gates when the
facility becomes fully operational.
