Age-old trade ties between Dubai and Kozhikode – a port city in the Southern Indian state of Kerala that welcomed its first Middle Eastern traders as early as the seventh century, are set to accelerate with the launch of Emirates Airline's six-flights-a-week service, effective 1st July.
 
Kozhikode, Emirates' third gateway in Kerala after Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram and its 10th in India, bears testimony of the airline's long-standing commitment to this market and its robust expansion drive.
 
To promote its award-winning product and to brief the travel trade on the wide range of services offered, Emirates will host a massive road show in Kozhikode on 26th April. A high-level Emirates delegation led by Salem Obaidalla, Senior Vice President Commercial Operations, West Asia and Indian Ocean and comprising Orhan Abbas, Vice President India and Nepal, senior executives from the airline's home base in Dubai and its Indian Headquarters in Mumbai will address a gathering of over 600 agents from Kozhikode and its surrounding districts including Cannanore, Pallakkad, Mallapuram, Tellicherry and Trichur.
 
Salem noted: "We are gearing up for the launch of our services to Kozhikode in the summer of this year. In the past few months we have stepped up our recruitment efforts, and will soon start training our newly-appointed staff to serve the city's travellers. In Kozhikode we will establish a town office, an airport office as well as a separate cargo office to manage the city's passenger and cargo requirements."
 
He added: "An estimated two million Keralites work and live in the Gulf region. Emirates has a robust presence in the Middle East, serving the region with 163 weekly flights to 12 gateways via its Dubai hub. The start of services to Kozhikode will enable Emirates to serve Kerala with an additional gateway and at the same time enhance connectivity between the state and the Middle East."
 
On the route Emirates will operate the technologically-advanced Boeing 777-200 and Airbus A330-200 aircraft in two-class configurations offering over 2000 seats and almost 100 tonnes of cargo capacity per week per direction.
 
Onboard, passengers will enjoy multi-course meals with ethnic dishes prepared by master chefs and accompanied by an extensive range of beverages; attentive service from the airline's multi-lingual crew; personal entertainment systems; and quieter and more restful cabins equipped with wider seats.
 
Earlier this year, Emirates launched daily services to Cape Town on 30th March. Guangzhou will be added to the airline's rapidly-expanding network on 1st July, the same day that Emirates commences flights to Kozhikode. The airline will also advance its footprint in North America with the launch of services to Los Angeles and San Francisco on 1st September and 26th October respectively.