Third A380 to London Heathrow

Third A380 to London Heathrow

Given the popularity of Emirates A380s, Emirates will add a third A380 service from London starting from January 24, 2012. This will mean three of Emirates five daily flights from Heathrow will be operated with an A380, significantly boosting capacity on the route. The airline brought its own brand of double decker, equipped with an onboard lounge and shower spas, to the British capital in December 2008.
After supporting EK flights 001 and 002 between Dubai and Heathrow, EK 003 and EK 004 became A380 services in July of last year, the statement said.
The giant aircraft, known for its quietness and spaciousness, offers 14 flat-bed first class private suites with electrically operated doors and 76 fully-flat seats in business class - all with aisle access - on the upper deck. Downstairs, there are 427 comfortable contoured seats in economy, spread across four separate cabins.
Passengers in all classes can settle down to more than 1000 channels of films, television programmes, music and games carried on the ice entertainment system, it said.
A personal satellite phone is fitted to each seat, which also carries a seat-back sms and email service, along with seat-to-seat calling and a 'My USB' personal picture viewing facility.
The third A380 service into Heathrow is another major investment for Emirates in the UK, where it operates 105 weekly flights via six gateways; London Heathrow, London Gatwick, Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle and Glasgow.
I know this news will be well received by our customers flying between London Heathrow, Dubai and beyond. As these magnificent aircraft continue to join our fleet, we can offer more seats and choice in and out of high density points, while enabling a greater number of passengers to benefit from the Emirates’ A380 experience,” said Salem Obaidalla, Emirates’ senior vice president, commercial operations, Europe & Russian Federation.
The international airline of the UAE has a fleet of 17 A380s amongst a total fleet of 162 aircraft, flying to 116 destinations – now including Baghdad.

Space Tourism Insurance

Space Tourism Insurance

Insurance company Allianz Global Assistance has signed the agreement with the international space organisation, in what it said was “in anticipation of the inevitable growth in space tourism and commercial space flight”.
Virgin Galactic plans to make its first commercial flights in October 2012 and the company hopes this will provide it with a new group of consumers.
“At Allianz Global Assistance, we are looking into space tourism as a new market for the next generation of travellers. Our partnership with the International Space Transport Association demonstrates our support and interest in the space travel industry,” said Erick Morazin, director of global accounts.
The insurance is being developed for space tourists, space scientists and space liners, the company said.  

Emirates largest order at Air Show

Emirates largest ever order at Dubai Air Show

Emirates Airline has placed the single largest aircraft order in dollar value in the history of Boeing with a deal for an additional 50 777-300 ER aircraft.

Worth approximately US$18 billion in list prices, Emirates placed the order at the Dubai Air Show.

The deal will also included 20 777-300 ER options valued at US$8 billion, for a total of 70 aircraft valued at US$ 26 billion.

This record breaking long-range aircraft order adds to Emirates existing world’s largest fleet of 95 777s in service, including nine 200 ERs, ten 200 LRs, 12 300s, 61-300 ERs and three freighters.

Emirates already had 40 777-300 ERs on the order books, so, with the new order, the figure now stands at a firm order of 90 777-300 ERs.

The agreement was signed during a ceremony - pictured above - at the Dubai Air Show by His Highness Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, chairman of Emirates Group, and Jim Albaugh, chief executive of Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

The signing was also witnessed by David Joyce, president of GE Aviation, whose GE 90-115B engine will power the 777-300 ER aircraft.

“With 61 777 300-ERs currently in service, this record breaking dollar value order is another milestone for Emirates and affirms our strategy to expand our long haul destinations and continue to excel as a world leading carrier, connecting the world to Dubai and beyond,” said Sheikh Al-Maktoum.

The 777-300ER will be operated in a three-class configuration with eight First Class suites, 42 Business Class seats and 310 Economy Class seats and offers an additional cargo payload of 20.1 tonnes.  

New7Wonder of Nature

Table Mountain one of the New7Wonders of Nature           Cape Town’s Table Mountain has been named as one of the New7Wonders of Nature along with the Amazon, Halong Bay, Iguazu Falls, Jeju Island, Komodo, and Puerto Princesa Underground River.  In 2008, Table Mountain was identified as one of 440 magnificent natural sites selected by the New7Wonders Foundation to enter the three-phase New7Wonders of Nature contest. In the second phase, Table Mountain made the 77 site shortlist before being publicly voted onto a final shortlist of 28 sites in July 2009. Today Table Mountain was selected as one of the final seven.  On November 7, 2011 Cape Town Tourism launched a bold new brand and marketing campaign for the city at World Travel Market in London. The new Cape Town campaign communicates every facet of what the city has to offer, from tourism and design, business and studies, to the rich diversity of people and it’s natural assets. It forms part of a comprehensive marketing strategy for Cape Town aimed at growing the demand for the Mother City by speaking to a wider audience in new and established international and domestic markets, while aligning with other sectors beyond tourism, complementing the city and region’s broader economic strategy and aligning with the mandate of the soon-to-be-established Economic Development Partnership (EDP). In addition, Cape Town Tourism has partnered with Johannesburg Tourism and Durban Tourism on a joint domestic marketing agreement that will offer affordable product and destination packages to and within these South African cities, as well as more robust event calendars across the board. The campaign also gave South African’s the chance to learn more about the mountain. Before the campaign, many people may not have known that Table Mountain is one of the oldest mountains on the planet, estimated to be around 360 million years old. Table Mountain was named a World Heritage Site in 2004 as part of the Cape Floristic Region, the smallest and richest of the only six floral kingdoms on the planet. It supports natural forest and indigenous fynbos along with a variety of animals and birds, including 8,200 rare and endangered plant species. Table Mountain is the only terrestrial feature on our planet to have a constellation named after it. The southern constellation Mensa (originally Mons Mensae – Latin for “the table mountain”), was named in 1754 after the increasingly world-famous landmark in the then “Cape of Good Hope.” It was a symbol of hope for freedom fighters jailed on Robben Island. Table Mountain is a recognized as a global icon, visited by millions of people each year and attracting the attention of royalty, sports stars, and Hollywood celebrities. It is one of the most photographed sites in Africa.

Muscat Second Best City of 2012

Muscat Named Second Best City in the World to Visit in 2012

Influential travel guide publisher “Lonely Planet,” affiliated to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).
The list included the best ten cities in the world to visit in 2012.  After London and Muscat, the list included Bangalore in India, Cadiz in Spain, Stockholm in Sweden, Guimaraes in Portugal, Santiago in Chile, Hong Kong, Orlando in USA and Darwin in Australia.
Sheikh Abdulmalik bin Abdullah al-Khalili, Tourism Minister said that selecting Muscat as the second best tourist destination among cities of the world, undoubtedly represents an emphasis of the efforts exerted by the Sultanate not only the development of all utilities and services, but rather in various dimensions of the modern city, such as environment, public health, landscaping and various beauty requirements that made Muscat as a unique city.
In a statement, Sheikh al-Khalili added that this appreciation coincides with declaring Muscat, the Arab Tourism Capital 2012, which provides the Tourism Ministry to use this appreciation and declaration as an additional motto for this occasion.

Another no-frills launch

SIA’s Scoot Airlines set to Launch in April 2012

Singapore Airlines has launched a new no-frills long-haul budget airline called “Scoot” which will offer airfares at 40% less than full-services airlines.

The carrier made the announcement today when it said that Scoot will initially operate with four Boeing 777s from mid-2012.
Scoot will operate on mid and long-haul routes from Singapore’s Changi airport with the first services likely to be to destinations such as Australia and China. It said flight prices would be around 40% lower than legacy carriers.
The plan is to then grow the airline “steadily” to expand to destinations such as India and Europe, before looking at markets such as Africa and the Middle East.
Scoot will offer two cabins onboard its flights and the airline will operate separately from its parent company from Changi’s Terminal Two.
Chief executive Campbell Wilson said: “The team building Scoot is passionate about this new airline, what it stands for and how it can change the way people travel long distance.”

New Homeport of MSC Lirica

Abu Dhabi now homeport of MSC Lirica

Abu Dhabi has reached a new milestone in its cruise tourism development with the arrival of the MSC Lirica – the first luxury vessel to homeport in the UAE capital.
Arriving from Genoa, Italy, the 59,000 tonne MSC Lirica was given a warm welcome with a spectacular fireworks display with its maiden sailing Dubai to Abu Dhabi.
MSC Lirica set sailing October 31, 2011 on the first of 19, eight day/seven night itineraries for the 2011/2012 season cruising around the Arabian Gulf calling at Muscat, Al Fujairah, Khasab in Oman and Dubai with 95 calls and rotations.
The ceremony attended by HH Sheikh Sultan Bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, chairman, Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA), who told guests the MSC Lirica would be remembered for breaking new ground in Abu Dhabi.
“We hope she has set a course that many others will follow,” he said.
The home porting of MSC Lirica follows the signing, a year ago, of an agreement between ADTA and MSC Cruises to deploy one vessel on a homeport basis in Abu Dhabi.  Since then, the two partners have jointly participated in trade exhibitions, marketing and advertising campaigns globally and brought their combined influence, channels and brands to bear in promoting the emirate.
Pierfrancesco Vago, chief executive, MSC Cruises, commented: “I am proud of what we’ve achieved so far and confident that this is just the beginning of a great new era for cruise tourism in the United Arab Emirates.
“I look forward to a long and mutually beneficial relationship between us, the port and tourism authorities and one that will ensure visitors from around the world an exciting new dimension to travel in the region.
“It is a future we can all look forward to.”
ADTA has estimated that MSC’s decision to home port the ship in Abu Dhabi will generate US$21.9 million in direct economic impact on the tourism, airline, accommodation, retail, transport, F&B and attractions sectors.
Cruise tourism has been prioritized as a core pillar in Abu Dhabi’s tourism targets which aim to achieve 2.3 million hotel guests by the end of next year.
Abu Dhabi anticipates receiving around 170,000 cruise visitors before the 2011/2012 season ends next April.