Dubai, Emirates Airlines, launched flights to Barcelona today as part of expanding of services to Spain. The airline’s daily flight to Madrid were twice daily on 1st July, together with the newly introduced Barcelona route, the carrier now services three flights a day into Spain.

The inaugural flight to Barcelona had onboard, Salem Obaidalla, Emirates’ senior vice president, commercial operations, Europe and Russian Federation; Hiran Perera, Emirates’ senior vice president, cargo planning & freighters; Brigadier Obaid Mehayer Bin Suroor, deputy director of Dubai Naturalisation and Residency Department; José Eugenio Salarich, Spain’s Ambassador to the UAE and representatives from the media.

Salem Obaidalla, said, “In the space of 48 hours, Spain has shot up our list of most served European countries.  

“Connecting Spain to our network with three flights a day from what was a daily flight to Madrid is a major boost to our operations and underscores our commitment to the Spanish market.”

Damià Calvet i Valero, territory and mobility secretary of the regional Catalan government commented, "With the new Emirates’ service between Barcelona and Dubai, the Catalan capital gets connected to one of the most important cities and regions for business worldwide.” 

“Emirates has valued Barcelona and its airport as a good opportunity within its global growth strategy. To Barcelona and the Catalonia region, this route also represents an opportunity for the globalisation of Catalan enterprises and for the region’s economy, key elements to get over the economic crisis.”  

Emirates Airlines will serve Barcelona with a 777-300ER offering 360 in a three-class configuration. EK 185 will depart Dubai at 0655hrs and arrive in Barcelona at 1200hrs. EK 186 will take off daily from Barcelona at 1640hrs and land in Dubai at 0100hrs the following day.