Sri Lanka is a huge market for Emirates which has seen the enormous potential for travel and tourism in one of the finest tourism destinations in the world, said Emirates Senior Vice President Essa Sulaiman Ahmad.
Addressing a large gathering including media personal prior to a visit to the Emirates A350 airbus at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) on Thursday, Ahmad said Emirates will extend its fullest support in Sri Lanka’s journey to make itself a leading travel destination in the world.
The roll out of Emirates’ A350 aircraft to Sri Lanka, featuring the airline’s latest interiors and innovations reinforces the airline’s commitment to a market it has served for 39 years.
‘We have tied up with the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau and are pleased to work with it to promote the destination through our fleet which operates four flights per day to and fro Dubai,” he said, adding that the frequency will be increased as demand surges.
Emirates and the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) renewed their partnership at the Arabian Travel Market 2025 aimed at further developing the country’s tourism and trade industries. The partnership was sealed through a Memorandum of Understanding between the two parties.
First inked in 2022, the renewed MoU will strengthen the collaboration between Emirates and SLTPB, with both the airline and tourism body reiterating their commitment to actively promote Sri Lanka as a destination to key markets within Emirates’ network.
Emirates Sri Lanka Tourism which is having quest for tourism promotion marks a new era for the airline’s fleet of the future. It is the third aircraft type to join the Emirates’ fleet of all wide-body, efficient and modern aircraft which includes the iconic Airbus A380 and the popular Boeing 777.
The Emirates A350 features three travel classes – Business, Premium Economy and Economy Class. The aircraft’s seating configuration has 32 next generation Business Class seats, 21 seats in Premium Economy, and 259 generously pitched Economy Class seats for the initial short to medium haul aircraft.
As the first Emirates A350s begin entering the fleet, the airline will offer customers more opportunities to experience its highly acclaimed Premium Economy product and sample its next generation Business Class cabins, particularly on short and medium haul routes, and in the future for long-haul missions of up to 15 hours of flying time from Dubai.
Emirates has revealed the next seven cities to be served by its A350, as more newly delivered aircraft featuring the airline’s latest cabin innovations enter scheduled service. With the latest tranche of planned Emirates A350 deployments, the airline is expanding the list of its short to medium haul destinations served in the Middle East/GCC and Europe. For the first time, the Emirates A350 will make its debut in Africa and Southeast Asia.
Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer, Emirates Airline, Adnan Kazim said, “Our strategic A350 expansion across diverse geographies in the Middle East/GCC, Europe, Africa and Southeast Asia leverages the aircraft’s operational flexibility and efficiency, while offering more customers expanded premium travel options and the opportunity to experience our latest generation interiors like Business Class and Premium Economy along with plenty of thoughtful touches throughout every cabin, now available in more cities than ever before.”
The airline’s latest A350 fleet additions will start scheduled operations to the following destinations:
• Emirates will operate the A350 six times weekly (all days except for Tuesday) to Tunis on EK 747/748 from 1 June.*
• Amman’s EK 905/906 will be served daily by the Emirates A350 from 1 June.*
• Emirates’ A350 featuring the latest cabins will land in Istanbul for the first time to commence daily operations on EK 117/118 from 1 July.*
• The Emirates A350’s first debut to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on its Dammam services will start on 1 July on flights EK 827/828.*
• The Emirates A350’s first foray into Southeast Asia will begin on August 1 on the daily EK364/365 to Ho Chi Minh City.*
• Emirates will operate its A350 to Baghdad three times weekly (Monday, Wednesday and Sunday) on EK 941/942 from 3 August.*
• The Emirates A350 will debut in Oslo for the first time from 1 September on its daily EK 159/160.*
Emirates will announce more A350 destinations, including long-haul routes, in the coming months as new aircraft join its fleet.
