November 16 2021  |  Airline & Terminal News

Video Clip: Emirates announces major retrofit program

By Rick Lundstrom


At the Dubai Airshow 2021 yesterday, Emirates announced that it will retrofit 105 of its modern wide-body aircraft with its Premium Economy product, in addition to other cabin enhancements.

The 18-month retrofit program, scheduled to begin at the end of 2022, will be entirely conducted at Emirates’ Engineering Centre in Dubai. It will see 52 Emirates A380s and 53 777s fitted with the airline’s Premium Economy cabin. The airline is also considering installing a new Business Class product on its 777 aircraft, with customized seats in a 1-2-1 layout.

"Emirates is investing in this retrofit program to ensure that we continue to serve our customers’ needs, and provide the best experiences in the sky. Since we introduced our Premium Economy seats a year back, we’ve received a hugely positive response,” said Sir Tim Clark, President Emirates Airline in today's announcement.

Clark added: "It is also a source of pride that the entire retrofit project will be conducted at our home base in Dubai. It demonstrates the strong aviation capabilities that has been built up within Emirates airline and the broader UAE ecosystem to support such a highly specialized and technical program."

At the end of the retrofit program, Emirates will have a total of 111 777 and A380 aircraft offering Premium Economy seats, including the six A380s that would have been delivered to the airline with four cabin classes by December 2021.

On the Emirates Boeing 777, five rows of Economy class seats located just behind Business Class will be removed to install 24 Premium Economy seats laid out in 2-4-2 configuration. On the Emirates A380, 56 Premium Economy seats would be installed at the front of the main deck also in 2-4-2 configuration.

Emirates’ Premium Economy feature anti-stain leather with stitching details and a wood panel finishing, each seat is designed to provide optimal comfort and support with six-way adjustable headrests, calf rests and footrests. Offering a pitch of up to 40-inches, each seat is 19.5 inches wide and reclines eight inches into a comfortable cradle position with ample room to stretch out. Other thoughtful touches include easily accessible in-seat charging points, a wide dining table and side cocktail table.

On their 13.3-inch personal seat-back screen, one of the largest in its class, customers can enjoy the unmatched array of music, movies, TV, news and other content on Emirates’ award-winning ice.

Panasonic Avionics Corporation has been selected by Emirates to deliver a suite of inflight entertainment (IFE) solutions for its Premium Economy cabin being rolled out across its fleet.

Emirates’ new Premium Economy cabins will feature a range of the latest IFE innovations from Panasonic Avionics. The 13-inch HD screens will be fitted at each seat, with integrated control buttons, ultra-wide viewing angles, LED backlighting and capacitive touch all creating a luxury feel for passengers when choosing from over 4,500 channels of entertainment on Emirates’ ice system powered by Panasonic Avionics.

Passengers can connect their own headphones to the IFE system via Bluetooth, experience its 3D gaming options, use the screen’s high-power USB type A and C chargers, and use AC sockets at each seat to power their laptops.

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