flydubai is considering flying to Australia when the Gulf airline takes delivery of the Boeing 787-9s it has on order, its CEO said at the recent Arabian Travel Market (ATM) in Dubai.
While the carrier’s CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith, doesn’t know if Boeing can ensure delivery of the aircraft by its 2026 target date, he says that the arrival of the longer-range planes will open up new markets for the airline, Aerotime reported.
Outlining his plans for the Dreamliners at ATM, Al Ghaith said, “The main goal of the Boeing 787 will be to fly us farther and into new markets”.
“I think of London in Europe and Bangkok Thailand. Maybe also to Australia, which the Dreamliners will enable us to achieve with their exceptional range,” he added.
Although Al Ghaith didn’t identify the Aussie ports it would potentially fly to, the airline would join Qatar Airways, Etihad and sister airline Emirates in a heavily served Australia-Middle East market.
The Gulf airline’s boss is also unsure of when flights might commence.
“We are not sure if Boeing can meet the 2026 deadline, given the delays it is experiencing in deliveries,” he said at ATM.
flydubai has 30 787-9s on order, with delivery of the wide-body aircraft due to commence in 2026 – and the extra range of the 787s would allow it to fly further than its fleet of Boeing 737 MAX-8s permits. The carrier currently flies as far as Pattaya (Thailand), Penang (Malaysia) and Zurich (Switzerland).
While flydubai markets itself as a low-cost carrier, the UAE-based airline offers a business class cabin with reclining seats on short to mid-length flights and flatbeds for longer trips. Al Ghaith also hinted that the upcoming 787s would feature a premium economy cabin.
The carrier also has codeshare arrangements with Emirates and uses its Skywards loyalty program.
Earlier this year, flydubai was named one of the 12 safest low-cost carriers for 2024.
In 2023, the Gulf airline was also named among the best budget airlines in the world at the World Airline Awards.
Last month, Dubai revealed plans for its new airport, Al Maktoum International, which will become the world’s largest at five times the size of the current Dubai airport.
