On May 5, 2021, Emirates announced it had returned its flagship Airbus A380 aircraft back to service at Frankfurt Airport (FRA), for the first time in over a year.
According to Frankfurt Airport (FRA), Emirates Super Jumbo is set to serve the German airport until the end of May 2021, with daily flights EK47 and EK48 from Dubai International Airport (DXB) to Frankfurt Airport (FRA) and back to DXB.
Literally speaking, this really is BIG news: @Emirates brings the A380 back to FRA! The airline had to discontinue its A380 scheduled flights to FRA due to the pandemic in March 2020. Now, the Emirates flagship will be flying between FRA and DXB again until the end of May. pic.twitter.com/u43efaxoYd
— Frankfurt Airport (@Airport_FRA) May 5, 2021
Due to decreased demand for international air travel in March 2020, Emirates had to temporarily cease Airbus A380 aircraft services to Frankfurt Airport (FRA). The recent comeback of Emirates flagship Super Jumbo for the first time in over a year suggests that the Dubai-Frankfurt route is seeing growing demand, especially given recently increased vaccination rates in Germany.
According to the latest figures, Germany has vaccinated about 8% of its population with two doses of the vaccine and about 30.6% have had a first jab, graphics.reuters.com data shows.
Additionally, some federal German states changed the quarantine restrictions with regards to vaccinated travelers. Hessen, where Frankfurt Airport (FRA) is located, waived off mandatory self-isolation for persons who vaccinated from COVID-19 at least 14 days prior to departure from low-risk areas.
While many Airbus A380 operators decided to retire their double-decker due to the setbacks of the ongoing pandemic, Emirates remained confident in the future of Super Jumbo. The UAE-based airline plans to continue operating Airbus A380s until the mid-2030s.
Emirates has a quite hefty fleet of Airbus A380s ‒ 117 with one being retired. At the moment, due to the setbacks of the pandemic, out of 117 Airbus A380s, 99 aircraft have been parked, with 18 A380s currently in service, Planespotters.net data shows.
