Emirate Airlines to become Largest Operator Wide-body Aircraft by 2015

Emirates Airlines, Dubai’s flagship carrier, is on track to become the world’s largest operator of wide-body aircraft by 2015, Boston Consulting Group said Thursday.

The largest carrier by international traffic is forecast to grow its capacity by 9 to 12 percent annually through to 2015, the research group said in its report ‘Middle Eastern Megacarriers: Gaining Altitude’.

Emirates has “nearly tripled capacity and passenger revenues over the past five years, adding 32 new destinations while improving aircraft utilisation, load factors, and yields,” analysts wrote.

“The specific growth rates will depend on how quickly the airline retires some of its older aircraft — to become the world’s largest operator of wide-body aircraft.”

With a fleet of 157 aircraft and the largest A380 operator in the world, Emirates currently flies to 114 destinations in 67 countries.

Despite Emirates’ cash margins decreasing from 28 percent to 23 percent during the past five years, BCG believes that the performance compares better than other international airlines.

Emirates is not the only carrier in the Middle East that is expected to see strong growth over the next five years. Airlines in the region are expected to triple their passenger capacity over the next 20 years, according to BCG.

Passenger flows to and from the Middle East are expected to increase by another 45 million passengers over the next five-year period, from 2010 through 2015.

“Because the Middle Eastern megacarriers have been early developers of the region as an important hub for long-haul routes—and because they enjoy significant cost advantages—they are well positioned to compete aggressively with more financially constrained carriers,” said Rend Stephan, Partner & Managing Director in BCG, Middle East.

Middle East airlines saw a 9.7 percent increase in demand in July, outstripping the 8.9 percent capacity increase, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said earlier this month.

Cathay Pacific Aircraft Emergency Landing at Hong Kong International Airport

Cathay Pacific aircraft with flight number CX 780 emergency landing at Hong Kong International Airport at around 13:45 local time on Tuesday. The plane suffered damage to the aircraft a flat tire on landing and caught fire. This event led to eight people were injured.

An emergency evacuation of passengers was initiated after the aircraft landed on the north runway of the airport, with six aircraft tires blown out after the landing.

Out of altogether 309 passengers and 13 crew members on board, four male and four female passengers were injured during the evacuation and were sent to hospital for medical treatment. Two were sent to Yan Chai Hospital and have been discharged, while six remained in Princess Margaret Hospital.
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Qantas Airways to Investigate Damage Tire of Airbus A380 Landed in Sydney

Airbus A380 aircraft owned by Qantas Airways was damaged when it landed at Sydney airport. The plane suffered damage to the aircraft tires. When the plane landed ban sparks a worrying issue of passenger aircraft.

Witnesses reported seeing flames and hearing a loud bang as flight QF32 touched down late on Wednesday, while media said two tyres burst. Video footage showed bright flashes from under the plane.

None of the 244 passengers was hurt in the incident, which comes just a day after a Boeing 747 was forced to abort a flight from Sydney to Singapore.

“On landing last night, two tyres were damaged. The aircraft was assessed on the runway by engineers and it was determined it was unable to be towed to the gate,” a Qantas spokeswoman told AFP.
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