Emirates Plans New Airbus A380 First Class Suite, But I’m Skeptical

Emirates President Tim Clark made some interesting comments at the IATA AGM about the future of Emirates’ Airbus A380s. He stated that Emirates’ plan is to keep flying the A380 through 2040. That’s not all, though, as he made another noteworthy revelation, though I’m not holding my breath.

New Emirates A380 first class “on drawing board”

With Emirates planning on flying the Airbus A380 through 2040, Clark also discussed the carrier’s onboard product on this plane. As Clark explained, “like a hotel, you’ve got to keep at it, and we’ll change out the products,” stating that a new first class for the aircraft is “on the drawing board.”

For context, Emirates’ A380s featuring first class (there are also some without first class) have 14 of these seats, at the front of the upper deck. Emirates first started flying the A380 in 2008, and since then, we’ve seen no changes to the “bones” of the first class cabin.

To be clear, we’ve seen small incremental improvements over time. We’re talking things like modernized aesthetics, better technology, the privacy doors being raised a bit, etc. But the concept as such has remained the same.

I’m skeptical of major first class upgrades

One might interpret Clark’s comments as suggesting that we’ll see an all-new first class suite designed for the A380. While that’s possible, I wouldn’t assume that’s a sure bet, at least if you look at how Emirates has historically approached its premium product upgrades.

The first thing to understand is that the A380 can be a tricky plane for installing premium products, especially if you want to put them on the upper deck (which obviously Emirates does, given the location of the showers). The upper deck of the A380 isn’t quite as wide as the fuselage on the 777, for example, so Emirates couldn’t easily just install its “new” 777 first class on A380s, without major modifications.

The next reason I’m a bit skeptical is because of the timeline. If a new first class product is “on the drawing board,” that means it’s not very far along. I’d assume that we won’t see this new product until 2030 or so, best case scenario. At that point, we’re looking at roughly a decade until the last A380 is retired. With A380s progressively being retired up until that point, I have a hard time believing Emirates will make the math work on an investment in a totally new product.

Lastly, Emirates’ A380 first class is just insanely efficient, with 14 seats in the cabin. Any new first class would almost certainly result in a significant reduction in the premium cabin footprint. If there’s one thing Emirates doesn’t like, it’s installing products that take up more space.

For example, just look at what Emirates is doing on its 777s. In 2017, Emirates introduced its new 777 first class. Eight years later, a total of nine planes have that product. Even as Emirates retrofits its 777s with all-new business class seats and premium economy, the airline is keeping the same first class product. Why? Well, the airline doesn’t want the expense of installing the new first class, all while reducing the first class footprint from eight seats to six seats.

I think the decision for the A380 will ultimately be similar. Maybe we’ll see the A380 get another aesthetic and technology update, but I wouldn’t count on all-new cabins, with seats that have a new layout. Because I just don’t see how the airline could make the math on that work, based on the approach it has taken up until now.

Emirates has no problems selling its first class, and I think that will continue to be the case through 2040, even if the airline keeps its existing product. Emirates’ first class is about as “mass market” as they come, and I don’t mean that as an insult.

My point is that the airline prices the product competitively, makes first class upgrades easy, etc. The airline isn’t trying to skim the market, in the same way that Air France does. When you consider Emirates’ exceptional first class soft product, I don’t think the airline will find it necessary to invest in this way.

Bottom line

Emirates is reportedly working on an upgraded first class product for the A380, given that the jet will keep flying through 2040. The new product is “on the drawing board,” so it sounds like it’s not very far along.

Purely in terms of making the math work, I wouldn’t expect a significantly improved product. Emirates won’t want to materially reduce its first class seat count on the A380, and the progressive A380 retirement timeline also doesn’t lend itself to huge product investments. I could be wrong… we’ll find out eventually.

What are you expecting from an updated Emirates A380 first class?