Paul Fleri Soler | Flying above global recession

Emirates has been operating in Malta for 15 years. How have Emirates connections changed travelling for Maltese passengers? Particularly to the East?

Emirates first flight to Malta was back in March 1998. Malta was the 41^st Emirates destination on its network and at that time the Emirates fleet consisted of just 30 aircraft. Today, 15 years later, Emirates has over 200 wide bodied aircraft in its ever expanding fleet and flies to 134 destinations worldwide.

More destinations are expected to open later this year with Tripoli re-starting on the 1 September along with Stockholm on the 4 September and Clark in the Philippines on the 1 October. The trans-Atlantic link from Milan to New York will also commence on 1 October. In Africa, Emirates will expand its Dakar operation with a linked service to Conakry in Guinea from 27 October 2013.  Emirates' launch of Kiev will follow early next year with services commencing on 16 January 2014. 

Through the expansion of Emirates' network this has brought about opportunities for the local leisure and business sectors. Destinations, such as the Indian Ocean islands consisting of Seychelles, Mauritius and the Maldives, have become very popular honeymoon destinations. Other popular destinations are Thailand, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. We have also recently started seeing an increase in interest to our relatively new South American destinations Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paolo and Buenos Aires.

We are also very fortunate to have excellent connectivity via our hub in Dubai to most of all our worldwide destinations in both directions. One can also opt to stopover in Dubai for a couple of days.

The expansion of our network and wide bodied fleet also offers a great support to our local import and export industry. We have the capabilities of carrying heavy and volume consignments and our delivery times are within 24 hours to most of our network destinations.     

How many passengers does Emirates see travelling in and out of Malta in a year?

In calendar year 2012 we carried over 93,000 passengers into and out of Malta and over 3,000 tonnes of cargo.

Emirates has won airline of the year award for a number of years in a row. How does the airline remain one step ahead of its competition?

We put a lot of emphasis and effort into our customer services from the moment that the client makes contact with the airline both physically by visiting our sales outlets or electronically via our website www.emirates.com.mt

We also significantly invest in our product offerings be it in the sky and on the ground. Emirates has always been innovative and forward looking being the first airline to offer a TV screen and telephone in every seat. Nowadays our inflight entertainment system 'ice' is second to none with up to 1,500 channels to choose from. Live news and sports are screened in real time and Wi Fi is now also available on our A380 fleet.

On the ground, considerable investment has been made by opening exclusive Emirates airport lounges across our main destinations - bringing the total number to 35. We are extremely proud of the world's only dedicated and purpose-built A380 concourse at Dubai International Airport. The lounges for our premium passengers are outstanding in terms of comfort and offerings. One can actually board the aircraft directly from the lounge.       

The aviation industry as a whole has taken a beating with many airlines shutting down or reducing services, yet Emirates seems to be adding new services all the time. How has the company been so successful through the global recession?

Last May the Emirates Group announced its 25^th consecutive year of profit and company-wide growth ending the year in a strong position despite continuing high fuel prices and a weak global economic environment.

Throughout the 2012-13 financial year the Group has collectively invested over AED 13.8 billion (US$3.8 billion) in new aircraft, products, and services. This investment has resulted in an increased customer base and a rise in global brand awareness. 

Despite a difficult operating environment, the Group continued to invest in and expand on its employee base, increasing its overall staff count by 12 per cent to 68,000. 

Emirates continued with its growth plan and during the financial year saw the largest increase in capacity in the airline's history receiving a staggering 34 new aircraft, the highest in any single year and an unprecedented achievement.

Overall capacity measured in Available Tonne Kilometres (ATKMs) increased by 5.5 billion tonne-kilometres. Other significant capacity increases included the launch of 10 new destinations across six continents, shipping more than 2 million tonnes of cargo for the first time and carrying an additional 5.4 million passengers over last year, the highest increase in a financial year. 

Premium air travel has also experienced a decline at a global level. How has Emirates retained its premium travellers? What makes travelling business or first class so much better than economy travel?

I am pleased to note that our premium class traffic has actually increased out of Malta. Year on year we have seen significant increases. We are the only carrier operating into Malta with a proper First and Business class product. Our passengers are able to commence their long haul journey in comfort from the moment they depart Malta all the way to their final long haul destination in the same level of comfort and service.  It is understandable that the product offering in First and Business class is far superior than economy.

We offer complementary Chauffer drive services in Malta and in most of our destinations both on departure and arrival. As mentioned above our Premium passengers are also treated to Emirates exclusive lounges around most of our major destination airports. An exclusive Emirates product is the onboard spa facilities on our A380 fleet.  One can actually have a shower at 40,000 feet.

Emirates has expanded its destinations significantly over the last year. Are there plans for new destinations in the remainder of 2013?

More destinations are expected to open later this year with Tripoli re-starting on the 1 September. Also effective from 1 September 2013, Emirates will reduce its service to Cyprus to four times weekly. Like any commercial airline, Emirates constantly reviews its operations and the deployment of capacity to maximise returns. Emirates remains committed to its Cyprus service.

Stockholm will be launched on the 4 September and Clark in the Philippines on the 1 October. The trans-Atlantic link from Milan to New York will also commence on 1 October. In Africa, Emirates will expand its Dakar operation with a linked service to Conakry in Guinea from 27 October 2013.  Emirates' launch of Kiev will follow early next year with services commencing on 16 January 2014. 

Where do you see the company in the next five years?

Looking ahead we have no plans to deviate from our proven strategy of investing in our business and focusing on core customer service.

No doubt, there will always be challenges to face.

However, with a further 193 aircraft on order worth over US$ 71 billion, combined with the airline's increasing worldwide passenger traffic, Emirates' is set to continue to drive considerable economic growth in the countries that it serves.

We strive to provide superior customer experiences and as our customers' expectations increase so do the expectations we set for ourselves.