Emirates' first retrofitted A380 superjumbo takes flight for London

The world’s largest passenger plane has taken to the skies with a new look.

Emirates' first retrofitted A380 entered service on Friday, departing Dubai for London Heathrow.

The jet has undergone weeks of round-the-clock work as engineers and technicians took apart and refitted its entire interior piece by piece.

Flight number EK003 is the first of 120 aircraft being refitted as part of Emirates' multibillion-dollar retrofit programme, the largest of its kind in aviation history.

Engineers are working to finish the programme in 2025. Photo: Emirates

The double-decker jet's fully refreshed interior now has four classes of cabin, including premium economy, which features wider seats and more legroom than economy.

Sleek cabins in first and business class sport Emirates' latest cream-coloured leather seats, while light wood finishing and carpets and stairs have been upgraded. Hand-stencilled panels featuring ghaf trees — which are native to the UAE — have been added to the first-class shower spa.

Registered A6-EVM, the aircraft is expected to land in the UK at 6.20pm local time on Friday.

“Customers will notice the difference the moment they step on board — the spacious A380 will look and feel even more impressive and comfortable,” said Tim Clark, president of Emirates. "With our latest interiors and products, this newly refurbished aircraft elevates our in-flight experience in all classes of travel, and enables us to offer more premium economy seats to meet customer demand."

Stencils of ghaf trees, which are native to the UAE, have been added to first class shower spas. Photo: Emirates

The refit was undertaken in Dubai at the airline’s state-of-the-art engineering centre.

“I’m particularly proud that this refurbishment work was designed, conducted and completed in-house at our facilities in Dubai, to the highest standards of quality and safety. It reflects the world-class aviation capabilities and infrastructure that exists within Emirates, and here in the UAE,” said Clark.

Next up for a makeover is aircraft registered A6-EUW, with work expected to be completed on the second plane by the end of January.

In numbers: 4,000 premium economy seats and 728 first-class suites

Emirates' new first class suites feature cream leather seats and light wood finishing. Photo: Emirates

The airline's operation will result in nearly 4,000 premium economy seats installed, 728 first-class suites refreshed and more than 5,000 business class seats upgraded.

As work progresses, Emirates will withdraw an aircraft from its fleet every eight days as engineers work simultaneously on two aircraft. This will allow the airline to complete work on all 67 superjumbo jets in the retrofit programme by 2024.

Attention will then turn to 53 Emirates Boeing 777s that are also due to be retrofitted by April 2025.

To master the world's biggest retrofit programme, the airline recruited hundreds of new staff dedicated to the project.

Emirates previously planned to debut its first retrofitted A380 in December on a flight to New York. The airline said that supply chain delays affected that plan.

"Due to supply chain delays impacting our retrofit programme, plans for deployment of aircraft fitted with Emirates premium economy seats changed and new timelines for the cities that were initially scheduled to receive the aircraft will be communicated in due course," a representitive for the airline told The National.

"Customers have been provided with alternative options and we hope to bring our premium economy service and newly refreshed cabins to additional cities as more aircraft roll out of the retrofit programme.”

As travel demand is at its strongest since the global pandemic, Emirates continues to ramp up its A380 services with plans to deploy the world's largest passenger jet to 42 destinations by the end of March.

Emirates' new premium economy cabins — in pictures

Emirates' newest superjumbo is fitted with the Dubai airline's first Premium Economy cabin. All photos: Emirates
The airline was offering complimentary upgrades to those flying Economy class to London.
The stairway on the A380 main deck, around which Emirates' new Premium Economy cabin is located.
Emirates' Premium Economy seats feature anti-stain leather and luxurious stitching details.
With a generous pitch of up to 40 inches, seat are 19.5 inches wide and recline eight inches into a cradle position with room to stretch out.
Each traveller has an in-armrest dining table and cocktail table.
Passengers onboard EK2021 will be able to experience Emirates' new premium economy cabin.

Our legal consultant

Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

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Manchester City (0) v Liverpool (3)

Uefa Champions League, quarter-final, second leg

Where: Etihad Stadium
When: Tuesday, 10.45pm
Live on beIN Sports HD

Other acts on the Jazz Garden bill

Sharrie Williams
The American singer is hugely respected in blues circles due to her passionate vocals and songwriting. Born and raised in Michigan, Williams began recording and touring as a teenage gospel singer. Her career took off with the blues band The Wiseguys. Such was the acclaim of their live shows that they toured throughout Europe and in Africa. As a solo artist, Williams has also collaborated with the likes of the late Dizzy Gillespie, Van Morrison and Mavis Staples.
Lin Rountree
An accomplished smooth jazz artist who blends his chilled approach with R‘n’B. Trained at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, DC, Rountree formed his own band in 2004. He has also recorded with the likes of Kem, Dwele and Conya Doss. He comes to Dubai on the back of his new single Pass The Groove, from his forthcoming 2018 album Stronger Still, which may follow his five previous solo albums in cracking the top 10 of the US jazz charts.
Anita Williams
Dubai-based singer Anita Williams will open the night with a set of covers and swing, jazz and blues standards that made her an in-demand singer across the emirate. The Irish singer has been performing in Dubai since 2008 at venues such as MusicHall and Voda Bar. Her Jazz Garden appearance is career highlight as she will use the event to perform the original song Big Blue Eyes, the single from her debut solo album, due for release soon.

The rules on fostering in the UAE

A foster couple or family must:

be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
not be younger than 25 years old
not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially

Groom and Two Brides

Director: Elie Semaan

Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla

Rating: 3/5

What the law says

Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.

“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.

“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”

If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.

Fixtures:

Thursday:
Hatta v Al Jazira, 4.55pm
Al Wasl v Dibba, 7.45pm

Friday:
Al Dhafra v Al Nasr, 5.05pm
Shabab Al Ahli Dubai v Al Wahda, 7.45pm

Saturday:
Ajman v Emirates, 4.55pm
Al Ain v Sharjah, 7.45pm

The specs: 2018 Kia Picanto

Price: From Dh39,500

Engine: 1.2L inline four-cylinder

Transmission: Four-speed auto

Power: 86hp @ 6,000rpm

Torque: 122Nm @ 4,000rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 6.0L / 100km

Expert input

If you had all the money in the world, what’s the one sneaker you would buy or create?

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“If I had all the money, I would approach Nike and ask them to do my own Air Force 1, that’s one of my dreams.” Yaseen Benchouche

“There’s nothing out there yet that I’d pay an insane amount for, but I’d love to create my own shoe with Tinker Hatfield and Jordan.” Joshua Cox

“I think I’d buy a defunct footwear brand; I’d like the challenge of reinterpreting a brand’s history and changing options.” Kris Balerite

“I’d stir up a creative collaboration with designers Martin Margiela of the mixed patchwork sneakers, and Yohji Yamamoto.” Hussain Moloobhoy

“If I had all the money in the world, I’d live somewhere where I’d never have to wear shoes again.” Raj Malhotra