Emirates is strengthening its dominance of the Middle East-Thailand sector with the launch of its fifth daily non-stop flight between Bangkok and Dubai, starting on March 31.
Its decision surprised rival carriers, who are questioning how Emirates could fill additional seats on a sector where its capacity is already plentiful with the deployment of the A380 superjumbo.
The launch will intensify the tough competition on the sector, making life tough for Abu Dhabi-based Etihad, Qatar Airways, Turkish Airlines and Oman Air.
Emirates' announcement came just weeks after the fast-growing airline launched a daily flight between Phuket and its Dubai hub.
With the increased service, Emirates will operate 35 flights a week between Dubai and Bangkok, plus a daily Airbus A380 service between Bangkok and Hong Kong and a daily flight between Bangkok and Sydney connecting to Christchurch.
These services, along with its Phuket flights, take the number of weekly Emirates departures from Thailand to 56.
Qatar Airways recently said it would introduce a fourth daily flight between Bangkok and its Doha base to meet growing demand, particularly from key feeder markets across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas.
The additional service, starting on Feb 20, raises Qatar's frequency between the cities to 28 a week.
But an Etihad executive said yesterday that the airline has no plan to follow suit. It will stick to its three daily Bangkok-Abu Dhabi flights and one daily service between Phuket and Abu Dhabi operated by subsidiary Airberlin.
Emirates has been operating flights to Bangkok since 1990.
Its capacity increase, combined with the launch of its Phuket service in early December, demonstrates the importance of Thailand to the airline, said Salem Obaidalla, senior vice-president for commercial operations in the Far East and Australasia.
The new service will benefit Thailand's tourism sector by bringing more visitors from the Middle East and traditionally strong markets in Europe and Australasia.
He said passengers and cargo customers will have added flexibility on the Dubai-Bangkok route and onwards to Emirates' expanding network.
The increased frequency is just in time for passengers from Thailand to plan their Songkran holidays and to accommodate the anticipated high demand for Bangkok services.