Emirates celebrates first L.A. service in Hollywood style

The new route marks the first non-stop operation connecting Dubai to the California movie capital. This new service is also Emirates' first to be launched from T3 which officially opened its doors to flights to and from the Americas on 15th October- part of the facility's first phase of opening.

Adnan Kazim, Emirates' Senior Vice President Commercial Operations - Gulf, Middle East & Iran, flagged off the airline's inaugural flight from Dubai to Los Angeles at Emirates Terminal 3 this morning.

The new $4.5bn dollar terminal is designed to eventually handle 43 million passengers yearly. Featuring over 250 check-in desks, 26 gates and various retail and service offerings, T3 has already started to offer Emirates passengers exceptional comfort in travel.

"Los Angeles represents Emirates' commitment to the American market," said His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group . "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."

"This route opens a new destination for business and leisure travelers in the Gulf region, a part of the world not previously served from Los Angeles. It will also enable travelers to reach every region of the world non-stop from LAX,"

said Los Angeles Mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa.

Emirates is flying its Boeing 777-200LR on the route, offering 266 seats in a three class configuration and providing up to ten tonnes of cargo capacity. Initially, service will be offered three times per week - Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays - before offering daily service upon the arrival of additional aircraft.

The new flight runs a distance of 8,339 miles, clocking a journey time of 16 hours and 45 minutes from Dubai to Los Angeles, while the shorter return flight is just less than 16 hours. Flight EK 215 departs Dubai at 8:20 a.m., arriving in Los Angeles at 1:05 p.m. (local times). The return route, flight EK 216, departs Los Angeles at 4:00 p.m., arriving in Dubai at 7:55 p.m. local time the following day.

The non-stop, long haul flight delivers 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 enjoy the award-winning service from Emirates' international cabin crew recruited from over 100 countries around the world, including meals prepared by gourmet chefs and the airline's award-winning ice Digital Widescreen product (information, communication, entertainment) now boasting over 1,000 channels of entertainment in all classes and nearly 1,700 hours of video and audio entertainment.

The new route joins Emirates' growing network of American destinations including a double daily service to New York's JFK International Airport and a daily service to Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport. On 15th December, Emirates will introduce another service to the West Coast with a non-stop flight to San Francisco bringing its total number of U.S. gateways to four.