Emirates has said it has entered into an “extensive partnership” with its sister firm, flydubai, which will involve a greater integration of services offered between the two airlines.
Although it said both carriers would continue to be managed independently, the partnership will see the pair collaborate on networks and co-ordinate schedules to offer passengers greater connectivity between the two. This will offer greater city pairing options, it said, and help to feed traffic to both airlines' respective networks.
The partnership will also mean greater integration between the airlines’ existing hubs at Dubai International, where Emirates currently operates from its own dedicated Terminal 3, and flydubai mainly operates from Terminal 2.
"This is an exciting and significant development for Emirates, flydubai, and Dubai aviation," said Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the chairman and chief executive of Emirates Group and the chairman of flydubai.
“Both airlines have grown independently and successfully over the years and this new partnership will unlock the immense value that the complementary models of both companies can bring to consumers, each airline and to Dubai.”
Latest aviation stories
> Emirates keeps options open as air travel industry tackles change
> Emirates looks to scale up flights to US after electronics ban hits demand
> Etihad 'disappointed' by American Airlines ending of codeshare
Emirates currently operates an all-widebody fleet of 259 aircraft, flying to 157 destinations (including 16 cargo-only points), while flydubai operates 58 narrowbody Boeing 737 aircraft to 95 destinations. The current combined network travels to 216 destinations. The airlines estimate that will grow to 240 destinations by 2022, when the combined fleet will have expanded to 380 aircraft.
Work on combining a number of areas such as network planning and frequent-flyer programmes is already underway and the group said it expects the first new code sharing agreements to be in place in the final quarter of this year.
Both Emirates and flydubai are owned by the Investment Corporation of Dubai.