Emirates gains goodwill in Guangzhou

A delegation of senior executives from Emirates arrived in Guangzhou to showcase the airline and Dubai ahead of the launch of its services on 1st July. They met government officials, VIPs, the travel trade industry, media and other stakeholders during the road show.

The Emirates team was spearheaded by Richard Vaughan, Senior Vice President Commercial Operations, East Asia and Australasia; Peter Sedgley, Senior Vice President Cargo Commercial Operations; and Edwin Lau, Vice President Greater China.

At a press briefing held earlier today, Emirates outlined its plans for Guangzhou and illustrated Emirates’ commitment and impressive plans for the city and Southern China.

Richard Vaughan said: “Dubai and Guangzhou share several common strands – both cities are of political, economic, cultural, and social importance in their respective regions. Guangzhou is positioned as an air travel hub for Guangdong and the South China provinces, and Dubai for the Middle East and increasingly on the global stage.

“Guangzhou is a vital link in our strategic plans and we look at playing an important role in its connections with the Middle East and worldwide to support the region’s economic development. Our upcoming direct services demonstrate our ongoing confidence in and our commitment to China. Emirates is grateful to the Chinese government and airport authorities for their support in helping us launch direct services to Guangzhou.”

Bilateral trade between China and UAE reached US$20 billion in 2007, up by 40 per cent from the previous year. More than 200,000 Chinese live and work in Dubai and the city hosted more than 68,000 visitors between January and September 2007 alone.

Cargo is a key business driver for the airline and Emirates SkyCargo’s services will offer a range of solutions for industries in Guangzhou and Southern China. Emirates SkyCargo will offer more than 350 tonnes of monthly capacity in each direction, set to boost existing trade ties between Guangzhou and the UAE and spanning the airline’s network.

Emirates will connect Guangzhou to the airline’s global network of 100+ destinations in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, North and South America, and Australasia via its global hub Dubai. The service will quickly connect travellers from Europe – mainly UK, France, Germany and Switzerland – and the American cities of New York and Houston. Travellers from Africa and the Middle East, particularly Cape Town, Lagos, Cairo, Amman, Kuwait, Addis Ababa, Nairobi and Beirut, are also well-served with a four to seven hour connection in Dubai.

Emirates also is busy setting up the local office and recruiting an experienced and dedicated team in Guangzhou to offer passengers the airline’s award-wining service at every customer touch-point.

Emirates’ 9000+ cabin crew epitomise traditional Middle Eastern hospitality. Hailing from more than 100 nationalities, including a significant contingent of around 100 Cantonese and Mandarin-speaking cabin crew, they guarantee unsurpassed levels of inflight services on the route.

Sumptuous international and Chinese cuisine – from seafood congee and chow mein to stir-fries and roast duck – and wines from the finest vineyards worldwide will be served onboard to tempt the palates of the fussiest of connoisseurs.

Starting 1st July, Emirates’ EK362 will fly non-stop to Guangzhou six times weekly, everyday except Fridays, using an Airbus A330-200 in a two class configuration with 278 seats – 27 seats in Business and 251 in Economy – and 13.6 tonnes of belly-hold cargo capacity.

From 1st October the service will become a daily and effective 1st December, Emirates plans to serve the route with a Boeing 777-200 aircraft in a three-class configuration with 290 seats – 12 in First, 42 in Business and 236 in Economy – and 18 tonnes of belly-hold cargo capacity.

The spacious A330-200 is known for having one of the quietest cabins in the sky and is designed to encourage privacy and personal space. Equipped with personal TV screens for every seat, Emirates’ A330-200s offers passengers 18 TV channels of inflight entertainment including the latest, classic and world cinema, sports and action, comedy, drama, Airshow and flying cameras that show take-off and landing.

EK362 will take-off from Dubai at 10:35 hours and arrive in Guangzhou at 22:20 hours, turning around as EK363 at 23:55 hours to arrive in Dubai at 03:40 hours, next day.

Emirates currently serves China with double daily passenger services to Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong and dedicated Boeing 747 freighter services – 13 weekly to Hong Kong and eight weekly to Shanghai.