Emirates to introduce new first class cabin

The world’s biggest airline on international routes said the new exclusive product will allow more privacy to its customers at “commercially viable” rates.

Emirates on Monday said it will introduce a new first-class cabin on its Airbus superjumbos and Boeing 777 aircraft this year.

“The new first-class cabin is expected to unveil this year and it will be more commercially viable for passengers as the pricing will be almost the same,” Shaikh Majid Al Mualla, Emirates’ divisional senior vice-president of commercial operations for the region, told reporters in Dubai.

Al Mualla said the new cabins, which are centred around the bedroom concept, will be installed on routes that have a high load factor in the first-class travel segment.

Saj Ahmad, chief analyst at London-based StrategicAero Research, said Emirates’ plans to launch an all-new first-class cabin product stems not just from the competitive edge it has, but it also indicates that the airline has been a consistent investor in its cabin products to ensure that passengers get value for money and more.

“With many airlines indeed dropping first class and reducing other premium business class seating on their jets to concentrate on capturing lower yield, but Emirates’ continues to introduce new trends in the industry due to its expanding network attracting passengers across the globe,” Ahmad told a leading daily.

He further said the US and Europe are key markets where demand for first-class products is high.

“It is likely that the new first-class cabin will be rolled out across its A380 and 777-300ER over the coming years, which will also include the 777-9X that the airline takes delivery of in mid-2020,” he said.

Given Emirates’ huge international network and the size of its widebody fleet, he said the airline will be able to benefit from its enormous economies of scale and allow for aggressive pricing for its new premium cabins that will keep demand high and allow higher profit margins on each first class seat sold, bolstering its already swelling financial coffers.