Emirates is among the favourite options for Australians to travel to destinations in Europe. The airline is extremely competitive on its pricing and offers some of the shortest stopover times in Dubai. Both factors that make the airline the go to option for many to make the long trip to Europe with on holidays or visiting family. However there was one piece of the Emirates network down under that had gone missing in the wake of the 2020 events and had yet to return. However in late 2024 EK will finally restore its pre-2020 Aussie network restoring its flight to Adelaide.
In this post:
- The Return of Emirates in South Australia
- What Will The EK Australian Network Look Like?
- All About the Schedule of Emirates Dubai to Adelaide Flight
- The Most Unusual EK Plane on the new Dubai Adelaide Route
The Return of Emirates in South Australia
The flight was a much anticipated one. There was a lot of talk, even in the recent Dubai Air Show, of the possibility of Emirates returning to Adelaide. The South Australian capital was yet to see its EK connection to Dubai (DXB) restored after the interruption of the flight in 2020.
The Dubai Adelaide flight is an important addition for both Emirates and the Australian city’s airport. EK can now boast connections to all major Aussie cities while the airport is now connected to a global network with a significant cargo capacity to Dubai.
Flights will take off on the Dubai Adelaide route on October 28th 2024 with flight number EK440.
What Will The EK Australian Network Look Like?
The Dubai based airline will once again serve 5 destinations in Australia. That, as mentioned, means that the airline will finally have restored its pre 2020 services. That translates to 5 cities seeing flights to and from Dubai’s International Airport (DXB):
- Sydney (SYD)
- Melbourne (MEL)
- Brisbane (BNE)
- Adelaide (ADL)
- Perth (PER)
All About the Schedule of Emirates Dubai to Adelaide Flight
The flight will be from the get go, on October 28th 2024, a daily service. Proof of how EK believes that the route can rapidly turn a profit. I myself was on one of the first flights to fly this route for Emirates back in the early 2010s. Going back to the schedule of the flight is, as all EK flight are, optimised for a seamless and efficient connection in Dubai.
The new EK440 flight from Dubai to Adelaide will operate with this schedule:
| Flight | From | To | Departs | Arrives | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | EK440 | Dubai (DXB) | Adelaide (ADL) | 02:00 | 20:50 |
| EK441 | Adelaide (ADL) | Dubai (DXB) | 22:35 | 05:15+1 |
As mentioned frequency of the new Australian Emirates sector will be daily. Flights will depart Dubai just after the wave of European services arrives and arrive back just before the morning wave of Europe-bound flights. Therefore transit times in Dubai are just enough to stretch your legs, squeeze in some duty free shopping and hop on to the next flight.
The Most Unusual EK Plane on the new Dubai Adelaide Route
What is most unusual about this returning service is the aircraft of choice that Emirates will deploy. EK440 will be served on a daily basis by one of 9 Boeing 777-200LR. These planes are characterised by an extremely long range, but in EK’s case also by a unique business class layout.
As we all know Emirates fits its 777 fleet with a rather unpopular 2-3-2 Business Class layout. This layout doesn’t ensure direct aisle access to all passengers as those seated next to the windows and in the central seat of the middle set of 3 will have to jump over their neighbour. Something that makes this not the most appealing travel option.
However that isn’t the case on the Boeing 777-200LR. These 9 planes are fitted with a 2-2-2 cabin layout. That means that only the window passengers don’t have direct aisle access. Furthermore, usually on Emirates 777s the standard number of J class seats is 42, while on this aircraft type it is down to 38.
The overall configuration of the Emirates Boeing 777-200LR is:
- 38 Business Class Seats in a 2-2-2 layout
- 264 Economy Class Seats in a 3-4-3 layout
If you are wondering which seats give you the best value, I would stay away from the first row of business class as that is the closest to the only galley serving both pilots and the entire front cabin. Also if you’re travelling solo I’d also go for one of the seats with aisle access.
In economy class, if you’re travelling as a couple the last rows, seats A-B and J-K near the windows, only have 2 seats instead of 3. Therefore you might be more comfortable there if you don’t mind putting up with some foot traffic of passengers going to the toilet and some noise from the nearby large rear galley.
