Emirates unveils new first class suite for Boeing 777 fleet, signs up Jeremy Clarkson



Emirates, the largest airline in the world, unveiled a new first class suite on the first day of the Dubai Airshow for its Boeing 777-300 fleet- and said is rolling out an advertising campaign fronted by Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson.
It's the "first of its type in the world" and took four years in the design process, the carrier's president Tim Clark said. The new first class cabins are inspired by Mercedes-Benz, who Emirates approached in 2014.

"Many carriers are responding to the perceived demise of first class by offering new business class options..."At Emirates we still see demand for first class remains very strong. So the notion that we would eliminate first class on our planes is wrong."

Emirates is the largest operator of Boeing 777 aircraft as well as A380s. The airline has 165 Boeing 777s in its fleet with an additional 164 on firm order, which include 150 next generation 777x aircraft. Emirates also has 100 A380s in operation with 42 more on order. The carrier operates the Boeing 777s to 140 destinations.

The new first class cabin on the Boeing 777 features a sleek modern design with soft leather seating, hi-tech control panels and mood lighting. Each of the six fully enclosed private suites have floor to ceiling doors with a window view. The new design was created in collaboration with Boeing, Rockwell Collins interior system, Jacques Pierre Jean Design studio, Panasonic, and Seattle-based design firm Teague.

"This is the first time an Emirates product has been so influenced by another luxury brand, but it is a natural fit as both Emirates and Mercedes-Benz have the same unwavering commitment to fine detail, uncompromising quality, and a drive to push the boundaries,” said Clark.

The multi-million dollar upgrade comprises newly designed seats in business class inspired by the interior of a modern sports car, the carrier said. The leather seats have a diamond stitch pattern in neutral cream colors and are fully reclinable into a flat sleeping position.

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Read more:

In boon to Boeing Emirates orders 40 Dreamliners worth $15.1 billion

Business Extra podcast: To the Dubai Airshow and beyond

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The new economy class cabin has a soft grey and blue colour palette. All cabins are equipped with an overhauled in-flight entertainment system.

The newly upgraded Emirates 777 aircraft will enter commercial service December 1 on flights to Geneva and Brussels.

The specs: 2018 Mercedes-Benz S 450

Price, base / as tested Dh525,000 / Dh559,000

Engine: 3.0L V6 biturbo

Transmission: Nine-speed automatic

Power: 369hp at 5,500rpm

Torque: 500Nm at 1,800rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 8.0L / 100km

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Haltia.ai
Started: 2023
Co-founders: Arto Bendiken and Talal Thabet
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: AI
Number of employees: 41
Funding: About $1.7 million
Investors: Self, family and friends

Kill

Director: Nikhil Nagesh Bhat

Starring: Lakshya, Tanya Maniktala, Ashish Vidyarthi, Harsh Chhaya, Raghav Juyal

Rating: 4.5/5

Cricket World Cup League 2 Fixtures

Saturday March 5, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy (all matches start at 9.30am)

Sunday March 6, Oman v Namibia, ICC Academy

Tuesday March 8, UAE v Namibia, ICC Academy

Wednesday March 9, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy

Friday March 11, Oman v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium

Saturday March 12, UAE v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium

UAE squad

Ahmed Raza (captain), Chirag Suri, Muhammad Waseem, CP Rizwan, Vriitya Aravind, Asif Khan, Basil Hameed, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Karthik Meiyappan, Akif Raja, Rahul Bhatia

KEY DATES IN AMAZON'S HISTORY

July 5, 1994: Jeff Bezos founds Cadabra Inc, which would later be renamed to Amazon.com, because his lawyer misheard the name as 'cadaver'. In its earliest days, the bookstore operated out of a rented garage in Bellevue, Washington

July 16, 1995: Amazon formally opens as an online bookseller. Fluid Concepts and Creative Analogies: Computer Models of the Fundamental Mechanisms of Thought becomes the first item sold on Amazon

1997: Amazon goes public at $18 a share, which has grown about 1,000 per cent at present. Its highest closing price was $197.85 on June 27, 2024

1998: Amazon acquires IMDb, its first major acquisition. It also starts selling CDs and DVDs

2000: Amazon Marketplace opens, allowing people to sell items on the website

2002: Amazon forms what would become Amazon Web Services, opening the Amazon.com platform to all developers. The cloud unit would follow in 2006

2003: Amazon turns in an annual profit of $75 million, the first time it ended a year in the black

2005: Amazon Prime is introduced, its first-ever subscription service that offered US customers free two-day shipping for $79 a year

2006: Amazon Unbox is unveiled, the company's video service that would later morph into Amazon Instant Video and, ultimately, Amazon Video

2007: Amazon's first hardware product, the Kindle e-reader, is introduced; the Fire TV and Fire Phone would come in 2014. Grocery service Amazon Fresh is also started

2009: Amazon introduces Amazon Basics, its in-house label for a variety of products

2010: The foundations for Amazon Studios were laid. Its first original streaming content debuted in 2013

2011: The Amazon Appstore for Google's Android is launched. It is still unavailable on Apple's iOS

2014: The Amazon Echo is launched, a speaker that acts as a personal digital assistant powered by Alexa

2017: Amazon acquires Whole Foods for $13.7 billion, its biggest acquisition

2018: Amazon's market cap briefly crosses the $1 trillion mark, making it, at the time, only the third company to achieve that milestone

Nepotism is the name of the game

Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, is one of Bollywood’s most legendary screenwriters. Through his partnership with co-writer Javed Akhtar, Salim is credited with having paved the path for the Indian film industry’s blockbuster format in the 1970s. Something his son now rules the roost of. More importantly, the Salim-Javed duo also created the persona of the “angry young man” for Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan in the 1970s, reflecting the angst of the average Indian. In choosing to be the ordinary man’s “hero” as opposed to a thespian in new Bollywood, Salman Khan remains tightly linked to his father’s oeuvre. Thanks dad. 

Fight card
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  • Michael Lawal (UK) beat Tamas Kozma (Hungary) KO​​​​​​​
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  • Darren Surtees (UK) beat Kane Baker (UK) KO
  • Chris Eubank Jr (UK) beat JJ McDonagh (Ireland) TKO
  • Callum Smith (UK) beat George Groves (UK) KO

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