Dubai-based airline Emirates has announced plans to refurbish an additional 71 aircraft, expanding its retrofit program to a total of 191 aircraft. The new plan includes the refurbishment of 43 A380s and 28 Boeing 777 aircraft.
The original retrofit program, which called for 120 aircraft—67 A380s and 53 777s—to undergo full refurbishment, has been expanded to ensure product consistency across the fleet. This move is expected to keep more refreshed aircraft in active service well into the mid-2030s.
Sir Tim Clark, President of Emirates Airline, stated, “We’re topping up our multi-billion dollar investment in the retrofit programme to introduce cutting-edge cabin products on more of our A380s and Boeing 777s.”
Clark added that the addition of more aircraft fitted with their newest generation seats and updated cabin finishings marks a significant step in ensuring more customers can consistently experience their premium products across both aircraft types.
The retrofit program, which is being managed and executed in-house at the airline’s Engineering Centre, has already seen 22 A380 aircraft retrofitted.
The first Boeing 777 is set to undergo an interior refresh in July of this year. Each Boeing 777 aircraft will take approximately two weeks to refurbish before entering service.
The refurbishment work includes the introduction of new Business Class seats in an updated 1-2-1 seating configuration, in addition to 24 of the latest Premium Economy seats.
The Emirates Boeing 777 will be configured with 332 seats in four classes, featuring eight First Class suites, 40 Business Class seats, and 260 Economy Class seats.
By the time the program is fully complete, the airline will have installed 8,104 next-generation Premium Economy seats, 1,894 refreshed First Class suites, 11,182 upgraded Business Class seats, and 21,814 Economy Class seats.
Currently, the refreshed A380s with Premium Economy fly to cities like New York, London, Sydney, and Dubai. Osaka joins in June, with 42 destinations served by February 2025 as more refurbished 777s and A350s enter service.
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