Emirates Airline says it has launched flight operations between Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Guangzhou, China promising to offer special services to Nigerian passengers who fly on the Lagos-Dubai- Guangzhou route.
Emirates Country Manager for Nigeria, Mr. Afzal Parambil, who spoke at a press conference in Lagos recently described Guangzhou as a popular destination for Nigerian businessmen and tourists. Parambil, who also doubles as Emirates Regional Manager for West Africa said the airline’s foray into the Dubai-Guangzhou route was in response to the yearning of passengers.
Said Parambil “Guangzhou was not the choice of Emirates but the choice of the market because most of the manufacturers in China are based in Guangzhou. Nigerians in the past used to travel there to source for goods for sale back home, but that has changed considerably as Nigerians now go into partnership to produce things with the Chinese local partner, so now they just don’t buy, they produce together.”
He said Nigerian passengers now have the benefit of being attended to by indigenous cabin crewmembers on Emirates flights, just as he said the airline had also increased its baggage allowance policy to make it attractive especially for Nigerians who fly with a lot of baggage.
“In Emirates, we have 130 nationalities as crew flying for us. So, when you are flying with us you must surely see someone from your country. When you fly from Nigeria, we make sure that the senior crew member is Nigerian, that way when there is an issue, he or she is there to support and assist,” said Parambil.
“Our baggage policy has also become very attractive. We now offer two pieces of luggage. In the past, we used to give 30kg for economy class, 40kg for business class and 50kg for first class. But having looked at the requirement of the market, we increased it by two pieces; economy passengers can now carry two pieces of baggage 23kg each making it 46kg for them, while those on business class can carry two pieces of 32kg luggage each making it 64kg, and this will help travelers going to Guangzhou, China from Lagos because they don’t usually travel and come back empty-handed,” he added.
He said the airline operates with the iconic Airbus 380 on the Dubai – Guangzhou route. The double-decker A380 is the world’s largest commercial aircraft in service, and it is extremely popular with travellers around the globe, with its spacious and quiet cabins that offers a total of 491 seats, with 14 private suites in first class cabin, 76 mini pods with lie-flat seats in business class and 401 spacious seats in economy class.