Emirates, the Dubai-based international airline, is to start twice-daily services to Auckland, New Zealand, from August 1 � in a further development of services �down under� for customers.

The carrier�s daily flights from Dubai to Sydney and Melbourne will both connect on to Auckland, providing 14 flights weekly in each direction this summer.

Emirates will then continue its rapid development of routes across the Tasman Sea by adding a third daily Auckland hop, this time via Brisbane. The service will commence on October 26 once Emirates begins scheduled flights to its fourth Australian destination � it already serves Sydney, Melbourne and Perth.

This will provide tremendous flexibility for customers travelling from Britain. Emirates already offers eight services a day from the UK to Dubai � three daily from London Heathrow, two from both London Gatwick and Manchester, and one from Birmingham � and will add a ninth on August 1, as its Gatwick operation goes �triple daily�.

They give an excellent range of services to the Middle East�s emerging centre for tourism and commerce and also connect with a comprehensive Emirates� onward network to most other parts of the world.

Emirates has full traffic rights between Auckland and all three Australian gateways, following a new agreement between the Governments of Australia and the UAE. It allows Emirates to operate with full traffic rights from all points in Australia.

Emirates' Chairman, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, said: "Our flights will offer customers a greater choice of carrier across the Tasman Sea. I am grateful to the Australian Government for the opportunity this affords us to extend trade and leisure travel opportunities in this increasingly popular region of the world."

Sheikh Ahmed added: "When Emirates introduces non-stop flights to Sydney on October 26, we will offer an unrivalled one-stop service between Dubai and New Zealand."

The new services will increase trade between the two countries and open up a new, stunningly destination for leisure travellers.

Flights will be operated with a Boeing 777-300 aircraft in three-class configuration offering 18 First, 42 Business and 320 Economy seats plus cargo capacity of between 17-20 tonnes.

Notes to editors: Auckland, located on New Zealand's North Island, is called the City of Sails because of its extensive sailing and water sports facilities. Not only is it New Zealand's business capital, the city was recently ranked fifth-equal (alongside Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Bern and Sydney) in the annual quality-of-life survey of 215 cities by the global consultancy Mercer Human Resource Consulting

Auckland's fertile valleys and offshore islands are home to award-winning wineries. Family attractions abound and the city has plenty of adrenaline for adventure lovers. Auckland also offers shopping, nightlife and unrivalled cuisine.

Auckland's international airport offers a wide range of restaurants, shops and recreational facilities for both adults and children plus care for passengers with special needs. These include playgrounds and day-rooms for children, a museum, golf and a gym.

Emirates flights schedules are as follows, with all times given being local.

Flights via Sydney Daily flights will depart Dubai at 0815, arrive Singapore at 1935, depart Singapore at 2045 and arrive Sydney at 0605 the following day. The flight will then depart Sydney at 0735 and arrive Auckland at 1225.

Return flights will depart Auckland at 1750, arrive Sydney at 1905, depart Sydney at 2020, arrive Singapore at 0215 the following day, depart Singapore at 0325 and arrive Dubai at 0625. These flights will be operated with a Boeing 777-300

With the introduction of the super long-range Airbus A340-500 on the route from October 26, flights will depart Dubai at 1015 and arrive Sydney at 0710 the following day. They depart Sydney at 0835 and arrive Auckland at 1330.

Returning flights depart Auckland at 1935, arrive Sydney at 2045, depart Sydney at 2200 and arrive Dubai at 0540 the following day.

Flights via Melbourne Daily flights will depart Dubai at 0220, arrive Singapore at 1405, depart at 1520 and arrive Melbourne at 0035 the following day. The flights will depart Melbourne at 0830 and arrive Auckland at 1400.

The return flights will depart Auckland at 1600, arrive Melbourne at 1750, depart at 1905, arrive Singapore at 0100 the following day, depart Singapore at 0210 and arrive Dubai at 0515.

Flights via Brisbane Starting October 26, flights will depart Dubai at 0830, arrive Singapore at 1935, depart Singapore at 2045, arrive Brisbane at 0605 the following day, depart Brisbane at 0735 and arrive Auckland at 1330. The return flights will depart Auckland at 1835, arrive Brisbane at 1900, depart at 2015, arrive Singapore at 0145 the following day, depart Singapore at 0300 and arrive Dubai at 0620.

About Emirates: In addition to launching new services to Auckland on August 1 and Brisbane on October 26, Dubai-based Emirates plans to launch further new services this year to Moscow, Shanghai and Lagos (subject to Government approval).

Emirates is the world�s fastest-growing major airline, while also being one of the world's five most profitable and 20 largest international carriers. It offers services to 64 cities in 45 countries in Europe, Middle East, Africa, Indian Sub-Continent and Asia-Pacific Rim.

Established in 1985, the airline has received more than 200 international awards.

The airline�s fleet is comprised of 51 aircraft � a mix of Airbus A330-200s, Boeing 777-300s, 777-200s and 747-200/400Fs, with an average age of three years, the youngest in the skies. In 2006 Emirates will receive the first of 22 Airbus A380 double-decker super-jumbos on order, and over the next decade it expects to more than double its fleet size.

Emirates is adding a record 11 new aircraft to its fleet during 2003 and increasing seat capacity by 25%, allowing it to start new routes, add more flights on many current routes and launch radically new in-flight services and products.

Emirates can be found at www.emirates.com/uk

For more information contact: David Wilson, Nicola McShane , Fiona O�Farrell or Simon Pearson in the Emirates UK Press Office at QBO Bell Pottinger Telephone: 020 7861 2446-49 Email: EmiratesUKpressoffice@qbo-bellpottinger.co.uk

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