Emirates' aircraft retrofit programme cost increases to $5 billion

Dubai-based carrier is also 'in the market' for more Airbus A350s and Boeing 777Xs, says president Tim Clark

'We’ve had to take control of our own destiny,' says Emirates president Tim Clark. AP

Emirates will spend about $5 billion on a programme to retrofit 220 of its Boeing 777 and Airbus A380s to keep older aircraft flying for longer, amid delays in deliveries of new models on order from the manufacturers.

The airline had said last year that it was expanding its retrofit programme to 205 aircraft at a cost of $4 billion.

“We’ve had to take control of our own destiny,” Emirates president Tim Clark said on the sidelines of the ITB trade fair in Berlin on Wednesday. “I could see the problems on the horizon, so we took the decision then, and thank God we did.”

Emirates “certainly” will not receive delivery of Boeing’s 777X in 2025 as the latest model of the popular wide-body plane is still waiting final certification, Mr Clark said.

The 777X is crucial to Emirates' future wide-body fleet. The world's largest long-haul airline has built its fleet on the Boeing 777 and Airbus A380s, but the 777X is long delayed and Airbus has ceased production of the A380.

Aircraft delays have become a major concern across the industry, with Boeing's rival Airbus also falling behind in delivery schedules. As a result, airlines have to keep older aircraft in operation for longer, often retrofitting them at a significant cost.

Dubai Airshow orders

Emirates, which will be the host airline of the Dubai Airshow in November, is considering additional aircraft orders as it expands its global route network.

The airline is “in the market” for Airbus A350s and Boeing 777Xs, Mr Clark told Bloomberg TV on Wednesday.

“What happens at the airshow? Yes, we're looking at additional fleet, bearing in mind that we're looking now into the mid-2030s, simply because the manufacturers are not in a position really to offer many new aircraft to any client before the turn of this decade,” said Mr Clark.

“So, you need to look at locking in positions for both Boeing and Airbus, given the ability to meet the current backlog … the Airshow will give us the opportunity, and probably the timing, to order some more aircraft.”

Trump tariffs

Mr Clark also said that the global economy is in “uncharted territory” with regards to the impact from tariffs imposed by the Trump administration.

“One could see inflationary pressures coming in as a result. We can see that affecting discretionary incomes with regard to how they impact demand for air travel,” he said.

“But this airline has been used to global traumas of some status over the last 15 to 20 years … so we will navigate our way through it. The demand for our services over the next six months or a year are very strong irrespective of this.”

While the global economy is in a “fragile state”, the tariffs situation will “resolve itself”, Mr Clark added. “There will be over the next six months, or a year, a reset. The level of tariffs will possibly fall, depending on which countries enter into some kind of transactional agreement with the United States.”

Emirates airline has unveiled its first A350 passenger plane. Emirates

The economy-class section inside the plane. Emirates

Emirates airline president Sir Tim Clark on board with Abdulla bin Touq, Minister of Economy. Janelle Meager / The National

Sir Tim shows Mr bin Touq round the new aircraft. Emirates

The premium economy section. Emirates

Comfort is the name of the game in business class. Photo: Emirates

Emirates expects 64 more A350s to be delivered over the next three and half years. Janelle Meager / The National

The A350 handover is Airbus's 175th delivery to Emirates since the first one in 1987. Janelle Meager / The National

Emirates also expects to expand its operations further into Asia, Mr Clark said. Earlier this week, the airline announced plans to launch of daily non-stop flights between Dubai and Shenzhen in southern China from July 1.

“We have got further access into China, we'll be pushing more in there beyond the point we just added starting in July, it's a great market, it's a very buoyant market, it's a well-sought after market. So, we will go there and continue to expand our operations,” he said.

The airline this week also said it will introduce four weekly services to Da Nang in central Vietnam on June 2 and three weekly flights to Siem Reap in north-west Cambodia from June 3, with both cities connecting via Bangkok.

“We are constrained by the availability of aircraft,” Mr Clark said, referring to delays in the 777X debut. “But as soon as we get these airplanes, we'll be moving into the Asian theatre more than we are perhaps today.”