Emirates strengthens links to West Africa with new direct Dakar service

Yesterday's flight by EK 797 to the Emirates's 105th destination, heralds the creation of the only non-stop scheduled passenger link between Dubai and Senegal. The new route cuts current journey times to Dakar by around eight hours.

Trade between the UAE and Senegal has climbed from USD 14.2 million (AED 52.1 million) in 2003 to USD 184 million (AED 676 million) in 2009, according to figures from the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Nigel Page, Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations, Africa & the Americas said: “This marks a new chapter in air travel between the Middle East and West Africa. No more will passengers travelling to and from Senegal face long detours to Europe or other parts of Africa to reach their final destination.

“Instead, they can enjoy a non-stop air link with Dubai, seamless connections to key centres in the Middle East, the Indian Sub-continent, Asia and the Far East through Terminal 3."

EK 797 departs Dubai at 0955hrs every Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday and arrives in Dakar at 1600hrs. EK 798 leaves the Senegalese capital at 1740hrs and gets into Dubai at 0715hrs the following day.

An Airbus A340-300 is being deployed on the route, offering 12 seats in First Class, 42 in Business and 213 in Economy.

On the cargo side, Emirates will be transporting 65 tonnes of goods a week from various points on its global network, including oil industry equipment from the UAE; textiles from Asia, electronics from East Asia and Europe; and a number of products and garments from India.

One of the key imports from Senegal will be seafood, with Emirates SkyCargo expecting to transport up to 3,500 tonnes of seafood a year in the belly-hold of the A340-300. Fresh produce – such as lobster, shrimp and sea bream – will be landing in supermarkets and restaurants throughout the UAE and the rest of the GCC, as well as various destinations across the Emirates network, including Athens, Larnaca, Rome, Milan, Madrid, Paris and Beirut.

The new Dakar route caps an exceptionally busy few months for the airline. Since the start of the summer, Emirates has announced orders for an additional 30 Boeing 777-300ER and 32 A380 aircraft; and placed a US$2.0 billion order for GE90-115B Engines to power the new 777s. With 12 A380 aircraft now in service, Emirates has employed its flagship A380s on its Beijing and Manchester routes, with the latter also commencing yesterday.

Mr Page said: “Our new Dakar service is a further demonstration of Emirates’ commitment to investing in and supporting the development of its pan-African footprint. Not only is the service already paying dividends through the creation of new jobs, such as our first Senegalese cabin crew and sales staff, but it will provide a significant long-term boost to trade and commerce in both the Middle East and West Africa.”

Dakar is the fifth new route to be launched by Emirates this year. The others are Tokyo, which launched on 28th March, Amsterdam on 1st May, Prague on 1st July and Madrid, on 1st August.