Flights will resume to Damascus from UAE starting July 16 (subject to government approval) after 13 years. The recommencement follows scrutiny after the suspension of services to the Syrian capital in 2012. This is in cooperation with the United Arab Emirates’ General Civil Aviation Authority.
Route to Damascus
The airline will initially operate three times a week, flying on Monday, Wednesday, and Sunday. They plan to extend these services adding an additional day each week starting Aug. 2. However, daily operations will only resume starting Oct. 26 (dates subject to government approval).
For Damascus, Emirates EK 913 is scheduled to depart from Dubai at 12:00 noon, arriving at Damascus International Airport at 14:10 local time. It will operate with Boeing 777-200LR flight and would have a 302 seater occupancy. The return flight, Emirates EK 914 will depart from Damascus at 16:30, landing in Dubai at 20:30 local time.
The aircraft will serve passengers with premium services including Business Class seats. The seats are configured at 2-2-2 and total to 38 in total. The food on board would include Levantine-inspired dishes and a variety of premium beverages. The in-flight entertainment offers over 6,500 channels to surf through including 650 channels of Arabic content, making the Emirates entertainment system (ICE) an assortment of curated content.
Strengthening ties with Syria
The UAE has taken the initiative to strengthen its bilateral ties with Syria. This aims to boost growth and reconstruct the Syrian economy, attracting foreign investments mainly in core areas such as energy, construction, and agriculture. It can be facilitated through the already existing network of 150 destinations under Emirates.
In an interview, the chairman and chief executive of Emirates Airline and Group, His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum said:
“Emirates is pleased to restart operations to Damascus and support Syria’s road ahead by providing better choice and connectivity, essential economic links for inwards investment as well as opening new trade lanes and global market access for the country.”
Emirates is further enhancing connectivity by allowing passengers to benefit from the airline’s codeshare partnership with Flydubai. This will ease departures and returns to Damascus with flexible and multiple flight options.
Reconnection with Homeland
The Syrian diaspora will be reconnected to their homeland through Emirates’ network of airlines.
His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum released a statement saying:
“Re-establishing air travel and connectivity is also good news for our customers that make up the expansive Syrian diaspora across the Americas, Europe, and the GCC, who are eager to fly back home and reconnect to their roots, and leverage their knowledge, skills, expertise and resources in ongoing development efforts,”
The UAE also reopened its embassy in Damascus in 2018 gradually deepening its diplomatic relations. It hosts 350,000 Syrians in the country, offering them the convenience travelling back. This comes with reconstruction offered following the war which previously caused instability.
Reconnection opens up space for more opportunities, therefore, Emirates is seizing on it with expansive flight schedules and options.
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