Emirates said on Monday that it plans to boost its operational workforce by more than 6,000 staff over the next six months.
As restrictions ease worldwide with the wider administration of the vaccine, additional pilots, cabin crew, engineering specialists and ground staff will be needed to support the airline’s ramp up of operations.
The airline said the recruitment is in response to the sooner-than-expected surge in customer demand.
Emirates has already restored 90 percent of its network and is on track to reaching 70 percent of its pre-pandemic capacity by the end of 2021.
The world’s largest international airline is supplementing its flight schedules with increased frequencies to meet the pent up demand. It is also deploying its high-capacity double-decker A380 aircraft on popular routes around its network.
By November, Emirates said it will offer more than 165,000 additional seats on its flagship A380 aircraft.
Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum (pictured above), chairman and chief executive, Emirates Airline and Group, said: “Emirates has always been at the heart of Dubai’s growth. Our requirement for 6,000 additional operational staff signifies the quick recovery Dubai’s economy is witnessing and will lead to opportunities and other positive developments across various other businesses, including those in the Consumer, travel and tourism sectors.
“We have been prudently restoring our operations in line with the borders re-opening and ease of travel protocols, and with the positive signs in the economic recovery and continuous growth of demand, we are hopeful to be back to where we were pre-pandemic, from mid-2022.”
In September, Emirates embarked on a worldwide campaign to recruit 3,000 cabin crew and 500 airport services employees to join its Dubai hub to support its operational requirements arising from the travel industry recovery.
As travel demand gains more traction than was earlier anticipated, Emirates will now require an additional 700 ground staff in Dubai and across its network.
Furthermore, the airline is offering exciting career opportunities for 600 qualified pilots interested in joining the global airline’s Flight Operations team based in Dubai.
As part of the recruitment drive, Emirates also aims to reinforce its engineering team, by hiring 1,200 skilled technical staff, comprising aircraft engineers and engineering support staff, to be based in Dubai and outstations.
Emirates is the world’s largest operator of both the Boeing 777 and A380 aircraft. Its fleet currently comprises 263 widebody aircraft and the airline has a number of new aircraft on order to meet future demand, including Airbus A350s, Boeing 787-9s and Boeing 777-X aircraft types.
All of Emirates’ Boeing 777 aircraft are in active service, operating to more than 120 destinations on both passenger and cargo missions.
The airline also currently flies its flagship A380 aircraft to 18 cities, and this will soon be scaled up by more than 65 percent to reach 27 destinations at the end of November.
By December, the last two A380s will be delivered to join Emirates’ fleet and some 50 of its A380 aircraft will have returned to active service.
The rapid vaccination roll-out in the UAE has enabled Dubai to safely re-open to international tourism and business activities since July 2020. Currently, more than 86 percent of the UAE’s population is fully vaccinated against Covid-19 and more than 96 percent have received at least one dose.
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