Emirates, the world's biggest long-haul airline, said its growth has been curtailed by late aircraft deliveries and other supply chain constraints, as it closely monitors troubled plane maker Boeing's turnaround efforts.
The airline should have received 85 of the Boeing 777X wide-body aircraft as of today, if the plane maker had delivered them on time, but the long-delayed programme has led to missed expansion opportunities, Emirates president Sir Tim Clark said at an event to unveil its first Airbus A350-900 plane.
"We are expansionist, as you know, and we've had our wings clipped because of Covid and supply chains," he said. "We are a frustrated entity because we need aeroplanes and we need them now. We're champing at the bit to try to activate our network and grow it considerably more than it is today. These aircraft coming into us are vital."
The airline is not reconsidering its 777X order but it is closely monitoring Boeing after the troubled plane maker overcame two major challenges by ending a more than seven-week workers' strike and raising $21.1 billion in capital.
"We just have to bide our time," Mr Clark said. "They have to sort out the current situation they're in. I'm hoping that with the $21 billion they've just had injected into the company and the end of the strike, that they're now working over the next few months to sort out what they're going to do. We watch that very closely."
Asked if there is more confidence that Boeing's new chief executive Kelly Ortberg has the situation under control, Mr Clark said "time will tell".
Mr Ortberg said last month that Boeing had told airline customers it expects first delivery of its 777X in 2026, due to challenges in certification, a pause in flight testing and the workers' strike.
The Emirates boss said he has "no idea" when Boeing will deliver the airline's 787 Dreamliners on order and that he has not yet met Mr Ortberg but may do so next year.
"He's only just in place, he's had a few things to deal with … we'll see, maybe in the new year," Mr Clark said.
Meanwhile, the Emirates president also said its 65 A350s on order are expected to accelerate growth and open up new destinations that were previously not considered viable.
"When we've got 65 of them, possibly even more, they'll be everywhere," Mr Clark said. "It's a very versatile aircraft, great legs, great payload capability and I think we've done the right thing with the product. Cargo space is huge and 20 per cent of our income is cargo, so you can imagine how this space under the floor is vital to us."
The A350 is the "first step" in fleet modernisation for Emirates, given the multi-year delays to its Boeing 777-9 jets, said John Strickland, an aviation consultant with JLS Consulting.
"The aircraft brings substantial fuel efficiency so lowering unit seat costs and importantly with its more moderate seat capacity, it will progressively allow Emirates to build frequency on existing routes and add new network points to thinner markets at lower risk,” Mr Strickland said.
Meanwhile, Mr Clark also said on Wednesday that he does not expect US president-elect Donald Trump to impose another travel ban on Muslim countries in his second term. "Those are some of the missteps of his first administration. I can't see that happening again. It caused absolute mayhem," he said.
When Mr Trump's administration first introduced travel restrictions in 2017, Emirates had to cut flights to the US after demand fell following visa restrictions on citizens from some Muslim-majority countries and a ban on carrying laptops on board from some countries.
Mr Clark said he remains hopeful the airline can resume service to Beirut "sooner rather than later", after a ceasefire deal was announced early on Wednesday between Israel and Hezbollah.
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Stormy seas
Weather warnings show that Storm Eunice is soon to make landfall. The videographer and I are scrambling to return to the other side of the Channel before it does. As we race to the port of Calais, I see miles of wire fencing topped with barbed wire all around it, a silent ‘Keep Out’ sign for those who, unlike us, aren’t lucky enough to have the right to move freely and safely across borders.
We set sail on a giant ferry whose length dwarfs the dinghies migrants use by nearly a 100 times. Despite the windy rain lashing at the portholes, we arrive safely in Dover; grateful but acutely aware of the miserable conditions the people we’ve left behind are in and of the privilege of choice.
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THE BIO
Favourite holiday destination: Whenever I have any free time I always go back to see my family in Caltra, Galway, it’s the only place I can properly relax.
Favourite film: The Way, starring Martin Sheen. It’s about the Camino de Santiago walk from France to Spain.
Personal motto: If something’s meant for you it won’t pass you by.
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Engine: 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 plus rear-mounted electric motor
Power: 843hp at N/A rpm
Torque: 1470Nm N/A rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 8.6L/100km
On sale: October to December
Price: From Dh875,000 (estimate)
