(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) Emirates further expanded its global network on Monday with the start of a non-stop, daily service between Dubai and Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam.
With the start of flights to Vietnam, Emirates now operates to 13 cities in 10 countries in the Far East; opening up one of the most popular tourist destinations to the airline's six continent wide network.
Onboard the inaugural Emirates flight to Ho Chi Minh City were Shaikh Ahmed Ali Hamad Al Mualla, UAE Ambassador to the Vietnam; Tran Ngoc Thach, Ambassador of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam to UAE; Thierry Antinori, Emirates' executive vice-president, Passenger Sales Worldwide; Richard Jewsbury, Emirates' senior vice-president, Commercial Operations Far East & Australasia; Pradeep Kumar, Emirates' senior vice-president, Cargo Revenue Optimisation & Systems; Hassan Al Hashemi, director External Relations Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry and Ngo Khai Hoan, commercial counselor head of the Trade Office of Embassy of Vietnam in the UAE.
"Through Emirates' non-stop, daily service, Vietnam is now connected via one-stop in our Dubai hub to our global network, which includes 31 destinations in Europe, 22 in Africa, 16 in the Middle East, 11 in North and South America and 19 in the West Asia and Indian Ocean region. We also look forward to opening up a wealth of opportunities in Vietnam for business and leisure travellers from the six continents that our passengers join our flights from," said Antinori.
"Ho Chi Minh City is one of the most vibrant cities of South East Asia. The city is recognised as the commercial capital of Vietnam, a country that has one of the fastest growing economies in Asia and that is why we have chosen this time to add Ho Chi Minh City to our rapidly expanding network. I would like to thank the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam for their support, partnership and vision in ensuring that the launch of Emirates' services was a success. We look forward to growing our partnership with Vietnam," continued Antinori.
The inaugural flight, which had passengers onboard from 16 countries spread across Asia, Europe, the USA and the Middle East, was operated by Captain Hamad Al Mazrooei, from the UAE along with first officer Tran Holm, who was born in Da Nang, Vietnam. Emirates currently uses an Airbus 330-200 in a two class configuration on the route, with 27 Business Class seats and 251 Economy Class seats.
Emirates flight EK 390 departs Dubai International Airport at 0915hrs arriving at Tan Son Nhat International Airport at 1935hrs. The return flight EK 391 departs at 2110hrs arriving in Dubai at 0105hrs the following day. Ho Chi Minh City offers tourists the ideal gateway to explore the wonders of Vietnam, be it the shopping options in the city, the various UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Hoi An, the islands of Halong Bay, the beaches of Nha Trang or the floating markets and restaurants of the Mekong River Delta.
Trade between the UAE and Vietnam exceeded $1.2 billion in 2011 and Emirates, through its cargo arm SkyCargo, will offer shippers a convenient cargo solution, with imports generally being automotive parts and raw materials and exports consisting of garments, footwear and seafood.
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