The Emirates Group

The Emirates Group is a public international travel and tourism conglomerate holding company headquartered in Garhoud, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, by Dubai International Airport.The Emirates Group comprises Dnata, an aviation services company providing ground handling services at 17 airports and Emirates Airline, the largest airline in the Middle East. Emirates Airlines flies to over 100 destinations across 6 continents, operating a fleet of over 130 wide-bodied aircraft. The airline has 170 aircraft on order worth US$ 58 billion. The Emirates Group has a turnover of approximately US$12 billion and employs over 50,000 employees across all its 50 business units and associated firms, making it one of the biggest employers in the Middle East. The company is wholly-owned by the Government of Dubai directly under the Investment Corporation of Dubai.

Head office

The airline's head office is in the Emirates Group building in Al-Garhoud, Dubai.[3][6] The building is located on Airport Road, across from the site of the Emirates Engineering Centre in 2004. A tunnel connects the building to Dubai International Airport. Construction on the building, worth 275 million New Zealand dollars, began in 2004. Construction was scheduled to end in mid-2006, with staff progressively moving in over the following year. Emirates self-financed the construction. Over 6,000 employees work in the building. Previously the airline's head office was the Airline Centre along the Flame Roundabout in Dubai.

History

Origins

As the British pulled out of Dubai in the late 1950s, Sheikh Saeed bin Maktoum al Maktoum decreed an open seas, open skies, and open trade policy, to develop the country. He also required all government agencies to make a profit. The country was aiming to eliminate its dependence on its finite oil reserves within 50 years.

The Dubai National Air Transport Association (DNATA) was formed in 1959, and by the mid-1980s, it was employing 2,500 employees. It consisted of three business segments - Dnata Airport Operations, Dnata Cargo and Dnata Agencies. In addition to providing support services at Dubai International Airport, the company served as sales agent for 26 airlines. Dubai had been used as a stopover on routes between Europe and the Far East since the days of Imperial Airways, which landed its flying boats there en route to Australia. The open skies policies kept its airport among the busiest in the Middle East.

During the mid-1980s, Gulf Air began to cut back it services to Dubai. As a result, Emirates was conceived in March 1985 with backing from Dubai's royal family, whose Dubai Royal Air Wing provided two of the airline's first aircraft, used Boeing 727-200/Advs. It was required to operate independent of government subsidies, apart from $10 million in start-up capital. It also leased a new Boeing 737-300 from Pakistan International Airlines which was returned back in 1987. Maurice Flanagan was named managing director of the new airline. Formerly of the Royal Air Force, British Airways, and Gulf Air, Flanagan had been seconded to DNATA in 1978 on a two-year assignment as assistant general sales manager. Chairman was Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, nephew of the ruler of Dubai became chairman of Department of Civil Aviation and DNATA itself. Tim Clark join the management team.

Boeing 777-300ER The first flight of the airline was, Dubai-Karachi on 25 October 1985. The airline leased an Airbus 300B4-200, from Pakistan International Airlines. Bombay and Delhi were the next destinations for the airline. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum later gifted two Boeing 727-200s to the airline.

The Emirates Group became profitable within its first nine months. During its first year, the airline carried about 260,000 passengers and 10,000 tons of freight. By 1986, the airline was adding new destinations such as Colombo, Dhaka, Amman, and Cairo to its route network.

In its second year the group posted a loss, but growth continued even as the region was experiencing a downturn a year later. The Gulf War and the laying off of expatriate workers as the main factors. In its second year, competitors had accused Emirates of starting a price war, something the airline's competitors still accuse Emirates of doing. On 3 July 1987, Emirates received its first bought Airbus A310-304, from Tolouse. Within the first 38 months of operating, Emirates was serving 12 destinations.

Emirates Sky Cargo, which operated as a separate entity, carried 25,000 tons of freight in fiscal 1989. Emirates expanded its route network into the Far East in 1990, and expanded its European operations in the summer of 1992. In 1990, the airline purchased three additional Airbus A310-300s from Airbus. The Group also launched Marhaba in December 1991 as a premium meet and greet service for passengers travelling through Dubai International Airport.

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