Emirates still ambitious

At a time when most airlines have major deficits , Emirates makes a many of them jealous. Present in Morocco since 2002, the company sees the Gulf thinking big.

"In February, we have acquired a new Boeing 777 fleet and to strengthen our response to the growing demand of the Moroccan market," says Khaled Al Haddad, General Manager of Emirates in Morocco. The management expects a 7% growth for this year. Compared to last year, Emirates has been an increase in passenger numbers from Morocco by 4.2% during 2010-2011. Travel from Morocco are in high demand particularly to Jeddah and Medina in Saudi Arabia to perform pilgrimage (Haj and Umrah).

A daily service is provided by the company from Morocco. The target is business customers, Moroccans resident in the Gulf and those who love tropical beaches. Seychelles, Mauritius and Kuala Lumpur are among the new popular destinations which rely heavily on the carrier.

Dubai is also among the popular destinations. Although the company claims to be open to all segments, the positioning is undeniably the luxury market. Emirates has been elected "Best First Class" several times. Today the company employs 37 people in Morocco, with ground staff in addition to the crew.

Emirates Tickets are available from 140 travel agents. There is an Airbus A340-500 serving the Casablanca-Dubai route. It consists of 258 seats spread over three classes: 12 private suites in first class, 42 seats turning into semi-flat beds in business class and 204 economy class seats comfortable. In all, Emirates has a fleet of 155 new generation aircraft including 15 Airbus A380 double-decker.

No doubt, Morocco is the most profitable destination among the 111 destinations served by the company of the Al-Maktoums. "However, we found a decline in tourists to Morocco in the light of events experienced by neighboring countries," says Al Hadad. Rather than a threat, management considers this situation an opportunity for Morocco.

Internationally, the company generated sales of 43.5 billion DH, including 3.5 billion net profit of DH in 2010. These results were achieved through an occupancy rate of 78.1% and 1.6 million tons of cargo transported.
In just one year, Emirates has led to a successful 27.5 million people (an increase of 21% compared to 2009). The company employs 36,652 people worldwide including a number of Moroccan pilots.

L'Economiste

Yacout Info

Saturday, August 20th 2011