Emirates to fly A380 superjumbo to Bahrain in one-off celebration

The Dubai airline will operate the service ahead of the kingdom's 49th National Day

Emirates is ramping up operations via its A380 jets to meet travel demands. Photo: AP

The A380 is the world's largest passenger jet. Photo: Getty Images

Emirates is the world's biggest A380 customer and offers shower spas and an upper-deck lounge for premium passengers. Photo: Emirates 

Emirates A380 economy class. Photo: Emirates

Inside Emirates new A380 Premium Economy cabin. Courtesy Emirates

The Emirates super jumbo is known for its luxury. Photo: Emirates

The grand staircase on an Emirates airline Airbus A380. Photo: AP

A custom A380 livery dedicated to Dubai’s Museum of the Future. Photo: Emirates

The United for Wildlife Emirates A380 before its first flight to London. Photo: Emirates

The Emirates Year of Zayed A380 makes a scenic landing in Hong Kong. Photo: Emirates

The Emirates FA Cup branded A380. Photo: Emirates

Emirates will fly its superjumbo to Bahrain to celebrate the kingdom's 49th National Day.

The Dubai airline will operate the one-off A380 flight to Bahrain on Tuesday, December 15. Emirates says it is due to higher passenger demand during the upcoming national day, which is on Wednesday, December 16.

Flight EK839 will depart Dubai International Airport just after 4pm on Tuesday. The one-and-a-half hour flight will then operate as EK840 from Bahrain to Dubai, landing in the UAE at 8pm. Economy class fares for the flight start from Dh810, one-way.

Is Bahrain open for travellers?

Passengers flying into Bahrain must take a Covid-19 test on arrival. Travellers must then self-isolate until they receive their negative results. Anyone staying in Bahrain for more than 10 days will need to take a second test. Children under 6 do not need to be tested.

Travellers flying to Dubai from Bahrain have the option to take a complimentary Covid-19 PCR test on arrival, or they can opt to take the test up to 96 hours before their flight departure time.

Emirates has been flying to neighbouring Bahrain for more than 20 years and has transported more than six million passengers between the two destinations. During this time, the airline has deployed its A380 on only six occasions. These flights were plying during busy Eid travel periods, on Bahrain's National Day in 2017, and as part of the Bahrain air show.

After temporarily halting many of its signature A380 services due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Emirates recently reinstated most of its luxury offerings, including the on-board lounge and in-flight shower spa. New safety measures have been introduced to the services to help ensure passenger safety.

Where does the Emirates A380 fly to? 

Emirates is slowly resuming its passenger network around the world, including on its A380 jumbo jets. The double-decker aircraft currently flies to Cairo, Amman, Paris, London, Guangzhou, Manchester and Moscow. It has also been used as a mini-freighter on some cargo charter operations across Emirates' network.

As the world's biggest customer of the Airbus A380, the Dubai airline welcomed its 116th double-decker on December 4 and has two more A380s scheduled for delivery later this month, one of which will be fitted with the airline's long-awaited premium economy offering.