Emirates Airline has announced a plan to retrofit the passenger cabins of 105 of its aircraft to incorporate the Premium Economy product along with other improvements, which will begin to be implemented by the end of 2022 and will last for 18 months.
Out of that total, 52 aircraft will be Airbus A380s and 53 Boeing 777s (a new Business Class with a 1-2-1 configuration is also being considered for the latter).
The changes will be carried out at Emirates’ Engineering Center in Dubai and will involve, on the 777s, removing five rows of Economy Class seats located behind Business to introduce 24 Premium Economy seats in a 2-4-2 configuration, while on the A380s, 56 Premium Economy seats will be installed in the front section of the main deck, also in a 2-4-2 configuration.
By December this year, Emirates’ A380s with Premium Economy will operate flights to Frankfurt, London-Heathrow, New York-JFK, and Paris. These aircraft (six in total) are the ones that are already delivered directly with the new product, not the ones that will undergo the upgrade.
«Emirates is investing in the retrofit program to ensure we continue to serve our customers’ needs and deliver the best experiences in the sky. Since launching our Premium Economy seats a year ago, we have received immensely positive feedback. Customers have been impressed by the quality and comfort,» said Sir Tim Clark, Emirates Airline President, adding that they want their Premium Economy product to become as distinctive and unique in the industry as their other products, which, as we saw at the Emirates stand at the Dubai Airshow, seems already to be happening.
The seats are covered in stain-resistant leather with stitching detailing and wood finishing. They have six positions for the head, leg and footrests. Row spacing is 40 inches (101 centimeters) and the width of each seat is 19.5 inches (50 centimeters). They have charging ports and 13.3-inch screens.
Aviacionline is attending the Dubai Airshow with four correspondents, bringing our readers with the most comprehensive Spanish coverage. You can follow our news on our special microsite aviacionline.com/dubai2021 or through our accounts Linkedin, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Telegram.
