Thaindian News

Dubai, Feb 19 (IANS) Gulf-based carrier Emirates will launch its non-stop services between Dubai and Tokyo March 28 followed by flights to Amsterdam, Prague and Madrid.
“Tokyo is the first of a number of exciting route launches in 2010 for Emirates. After Tokyo’s March 28 launch, we will also start similar services from Dubai to Amsterdam starting May 1, Prague July 1 and to Madrid from Aug 1,” Emirates’ senior vice president for commercial operations Richard Jewsbury said in a statement Friday.

The airline will have five flights a week on Dubai-Tokyo route. The airline already flies daily non-stop from Dubai to another Japanese city, Osaka.

According to the airline, there are over 3,000 Japanese nationals living in Dubai. “The new and the existing Emirates route will offer a seamless connection between the two cities and for passengers from Japan, the routes will open up the Emirates network on six continents via Dubai,” Jewsbury said.

The airline have direct non-stop flights from Dubai to Tokyo following revised air services agreement between UAE and Japan. The airline is currently holding road shows in Tokyo.

The airline said its new route will also strengthen the long standing partnership between Emirates and Japan Airlines, with code sharing on the Narita service, in addition to the existing code share on Emirates’ Osaka flights.

The airlines has carried over 1.3 million people and 60,000 tonnes of cargo on its flights to Japan since 2002. The airline now expects the volume to grow further.

Trade between Japan and the UAE has grown by 300 percent to over $57 billion in 2008 from $14.5 billion in 2002, the year Emirates first began its flights to Osaka.