Emirates’ first retrofitted A380 aircraft enters service

Emirates has announced its first completely refurbished A380 under the airline’s US$ 2 billion retrofit programme has been deployed on the carrier’s Dubai-London Heathrow service.

“Customers will notice the difference the moment they step on board – the spacious A380 will look and feel even more impressive and comfortable,” Sir Tim Clark, President of Emirates said. “With our latest interiors and products, this newly refurbished aircraft elevates our inflight experience in all classes of travel, and enables us to offer more Premium Economy seats to meet customer demand.

“I’m particularly proud that this refurbishment work was designed, conducted and completed inhouse at our facilities in Dubai, to the highest standards of quality and safety. It reflects the world-class aviation capabilities and infrastructure that exists within Emirates, and here in the UAE.”

The new A380 interior features 56 Premium Economy class seats on the main deck and new colour palettes in the carpeting and wall panels. First and Business Class seats have Emirates’ latest cream-coloured leather upholstery and lighter-toned wood finishing, similar to the airline’s ‘game changer’ product. Emirates’ signature ghaf tree motif also features prominently throughout the interiors, including hand-stencilled panels in the First Class Shower Spa.

The next Emirates A380 makeover is expected to be completed by the end of this month and as the programme progresses, engineers will work simultaneously on two aircraft. This means that one aircraft in the fleet will be withdrawn from service every eight days and transferred to Emirates Engineering facilities.

Emirates says that by 2024, all 67 A380s assigned for refurbishment will have returned to service and the airline will then begin work on its 53 Boeing 777s earmarked for this project. The airline expects to complete the programme in 2025.