Bright spot for UAE holidaymakers as Emirates and other airlines in price war

Emirates is offering two for one deals out of the US. Thomas Peter / Reuters

A price war among airlines is set to send fares to Europe and the US tumbling.

Emirates Airline, Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa have announced a flurry of deals in the past week amid fierce competition between regional carriers, and European and North American rivals.

The falling price of oil is also allowing airlines to trim costs.

That will be good news for holidaymakers booking flights out of the UAE, and expatriates planning summer trips.

“I would expect price wars as lower fuel prices are passed on to consumers,” said Stephen Furlong, an aviation analyst with the Davy Group in Dublin.

“There is also significant and continuing capacity coming to and from the Middle East and onwards, which leads to very competitive fares.”

Turkish Airlines yesterday introduced Dh1,370 tickets to Istanbul from Dubai, while Emirates is offering two for one deals out of the US.

Last week Lufthansa struck back at mounting competition from regional rivals with a $111 fare to Dubai.

The cuts come amid a fierce row between regional airlines and competitors in Europe over whether Emirates and others benefit from state subsidies.

The Dubai carrier has vigorously denied the claims.

The row increased on Tuesday as a German official with a political delegation in Doha ruled out more landing rights in Germany for regional carriers until the dispute is resolved.

“Until the problems linked to the subsidies matter are solved and a level playing field for competition established there will be no additional landing rights,” the German government’s aviation coordinator, Brigitte Zypries, told Bloomberg.

Sultan Al Mansouri, the Minister of Economy, said this week that accusations of regional governments subsidising their airlines should be proven.

“The word ‘subsidies’ is really misused,” Mr Al Mansouri said.

Airlines including Emirates and Lufthansa deny their latest fare cuts were related to the dispute.

“Our tactical promotions are not linked in any way to the subsidies issue,” said an Emirates spokeswoman. “Like all airlines, Emirates offers a variety of fares throughout the year depending on market forces.”

Competition is particularly fierce on US routes. Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways have added thousands of seats on new routes into airports such as Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Angeles and Boston.

Price-comparison website Kayak shows Emirates and Qatar vying for the lowest fares out of Dallas-Fort Worth to Dubai for the next three months at below US$1,000 (Dh3,670) a ticket.

The nearest price from a US carrier for the same period is $1175, from United Airlines.

Pratyush Paul, an IT professional based in Dallas is a regular traveller through Dubai.

“When I travelled in 2012 from Dallas-Forth Worth to Dubai on to India on Emirates I paid $2,475,” Mr Paul said. “This July when I travel to India on Emirates I will pay $1,600.”