Emirates announces flights to Los Angeles

On 1st September 2008 Emirates will open its third U.S. gateway with non-stop flights between the Californian city of Los Angeles and Dubai.

Operating daily, the service will be the first non-stop operation connecting Dubai, the Gateway to Arabia to L.A., the Gateway to Hollywood. Emirates will fly its Boeing 777-200LR on the route, offering 266 seats in a three class configuration and will provide up to 10 tonnes of cargo capacity from L.A.

HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group said:

"Los Angeles represents Emirates' commitment to the American market. We have evaluated the U.S. for expansion opportunities and have carefully examined our existing services in Houston and New York- both of which have been very successful. We look forward to recreating this success by connecting Los Angeles to Dubai and beyond."

Antonio Villaraigosa, Mayor of Los Angeles said: "I am pleased that Emirates has chosen L.A. as its U.S. West Coast gateway and I look forward to the start of service later this year. The route opens a new destination for business and leisure travellers in the Gulf region, a part of the world not previously served from Los Angeles. It will also enable travellers to reach every region of the world non-stop from LAX."

The new flight runs a distance of 8339 miles, clocking 16 hours 35 minutes journey time to California, while the shorter return flight will be just under 16 hours.

The non-stop, long haul flight will deliver the highest standards of comfort: Emirates' 777-200LR is fitted with eight luxurious private suites in First class, 42 of its latest lie-flat beds in Business class, and generous space for 216 passengers in Economy class.

Passengers in all classes will enjoy the award-winning service from Emirates' international cabin crew recruited from over 100 countries around the world; meals prepared by gourmet chefs; as well as the airline's award-winning ice Digital Widescreen product (information, communication, entertainment) now boasting over 1000 channels of entertainment in all classes and nearly 1,700 hours of video and audio entertainment.

The new service will also provide its customers in the Middle East and Asia with direct access to California's largest city and the second largest city in the U.S. Los Angeles is one of the world's best known centres of culture and international trade and is famed for its status as the capital of the western film industry. Other significant industries in L.A. include aerospace, agriculture, petroleum and tourism.

The new service will operate out of the Tom Bradley International Terminal at Los Angeles International Airport, (LAX). LAX is located 24 kms southwest of Los Angeles and is the world's fifth busiest airport. In 2007, the airport handled more than 61 million passengers.

L.A. is the fourth new destination that Emirates has announced it will be introducing in 2008. The airline has already announced its plans to start services to Cape Town on 30th March plus Calicut, India and Guangzhou, China, both on 1st July of this year. The new route joins Emirates' growing network of American destinations including a double daily service to New York's JFK International Airport and its daily service to Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

Emirates currently serves 99 cities in 62 countries across the Middle East, Africa, the Indian Subcontinent, Europe, the Far East, and North America.