Emirates feels Celtic Tiger effect on Dublin route

Emirates Airline, Dubai’s flag carrier, has rushed to operate a larger aircraft on its Dublin route after demand outstripped supply on the three-week-old service.

The world’s largest long-haul carrier said it would operate a 360-seater Boeing 777-300ER from July after load factor – the proportion of seats sold per flight - passed 90 percent on the route.

Emirates debuted its service to the Irish capital with a 237-seat Airbus A330, a plane expected to meet capacity demand for the first two or three years.

“Dublin is exceeding our expectations much faster than was predicted,” said Salem Obaidalla, senior VP, commercial operations, Europe and Russian Federation. “A bigger aircraft means more good news for the Irish economy.”

Ireland has a population of around 4.5 million and a thriving tourism industry, with a significant number of nationals living overseas. Some 80,000 Irish nationals live in Australia alone.

The world’s No.1 airline on international routes, Emirates has faced criticism from European carriers who have pressed their governments to deny the fast-growing airline new flying rights.

Carriers including Air France-KLM Group, Europe’s biggest carrier by traffic, claim that lower taxes and airport fees at Emirate’s Dubai hub amounts to an unfair advantage.

The carrier signed a deal with Boeing in November for 50 777-300ER jets, and an option for 20 more, in a contract valued at $26bn. The signing marked Boeing’s largest civil jet order to date.

Emirates currently has 90 Airbus A380 aircraft on order.