Emirates’ Washington service to boost trade

Exports for the first six months of 2012 up 60 per cent more than the same period last year

Washington: The Wednesday’s launch of a new non-stop daily Emirates flight service from Dubai to Washington, DC will bring hundreds of millions of dollars into the regional economy as well create jobs, say business and government officials in the US capital.

It will also open up new business opportunities for the UAE which consumed more than $16 billion (Dh58.75 billion) in American exports in 2011, a number that is expected to jump considerably again by year’s end given that exports for the first six months of 2012 are up 60 per cent more than the same period last year.

Jack Potter, President and CEO of Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, considers the airline’s new route — its seventh to the US — to be good for business and “another milestone for the airport authority at Dulles”.

Francisco Sanchez, Under Secretary of Commerce International Trade, said, the new flight service would “strengthen economic ties between the United States and the UAE”.

Emirates commitment to Washington DC will also help create new jobs, Sanchez said because it will help support Boeing exports abroad, namely the UAE.

“Emirates has the largest Boeing 777 fleet in the world,” Sanchez said, referring to its 116 Boeing aircraft of different types now in operation with a further 83 on order.

Robert Buchanan, chairman of 2030 Group which helped establish the new flight service, said, research shows that Washington businesses demand 50 per cent more air services than the national US average.

“This new service will add to that,” Buchanan said.

He pointed out that economic models have determined that in the first year of a new flight service being established in a major metropolitan city, the influx of visitors can bring anywhere from $200 million to $300 million.

Yousef Al Otaiba, UAE Ambassador to the United States, said, he is pleased with the new service not only because he can now take a direct flight home, but also because of the huge economic potential the new link stands to benefit both the US and the UAE.

As both countries engaged this week in an economic policy dialogue, Al Otaiba said the new Emirates flight “paves the way for prosperity. This means more business, more exports, more visits”.

Emirates President, Tim Clark, said at a press conference at Dulles International Airport that opening the new route will bring the two countries closer.

“Landing here is a landmark in the airport’s history,” he said, referring to the 50th anniversary of the airport opening by President John F. Kennedy.

Dulles records more than seven million passengers a year, he said.

Orhan Abbas, senior vice president Commercial Operations in the Americas, told Gulf News that Emirates highly values the American market.

The new service, he said, “shows our commitment to the trade relations between our two countries”.

Emirates has carried a total of 5.8 million passengers on its flights from Dubai to the US since 2004, according to a WAM report. The carrier has also transported 300,000 tons of cargo since 2004, which contributed to facilitating the flow of trade from the US, opening new markets in the Middle East and Indian Subcontinent for American exporters. The report added that Emirates currently has a shipping capacity of 790 tons of cargo per week to the US.