en.Wedoany.com Reported - Emirates has confirmed that it will operate scheduled flights between Dubai International Airport (DXB) and Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL) using the Airbus A380 from October 25 this year. The largest airline in the United Arab Emirates previously operated the aircraft type to Delhi only once in July 2010 to celebrate the opening of a new terminal; this will be the first time the aircraft is regularly deployed on the route.

With Emirates joining, Delhi Airport will have three airlines operating A380 flights, the other two being Lufthansa and Singapore Airlines. This number of operators exceeds the previous record. With three daily ultra-large aircraft services, Delhi will become the busiest airport in India for A380 operations. According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) seasonal schedule division, northern airlines switch to winter timetables on October 25, and from that date, Emirates will deploy the double-decker aircraft to Delhi on a regular basis for the first time.

Emirates' A380 flying to Delhi will feature a four-class configuration, with the exact number of seats yet to be confirmed; its four-class A380s have seating capacities ranging from 468 to 487 seats. The aircraft type will replace the four-class Boeing 777-300ER, and the upgrade means a significant increase in capacity during peak hours of the day. On specific flights operated by the A380, seats in First, Business, Premium Economy, and Economy classes will be notably increased. According to the schedule, there will be four daily flights from Dubai to Delhi in November: the first at 4:20-8:55 (777-300ER), the second at 9:55-14:40 (777-300ER), the third at 15:10-19:55 (777-300ER), and the fourth at 21:30-2:10+1 (originally 777-300ER, to be replaced by the A380 with 468 to 487 seats). Flights from Delhi to Dubai are at 4:10-6:35 (originally 777-300ER, to be replaced by the A380), 10:35-13:00 (777-300ER), 16:15-18:35 (777-300ER), and 21:30-23:59 (777-300ER).

Excluding the single flight to Delhi in 2010, Emirates' ultra-large aircraft has been serving India since 2014. Between 2014 and 2020, only Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (BOM) received the aircraft type. Flights to Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport (BLR) were launched in 2022. Now, Emirates will become the only airline flying the A380 to three Indian airports. Etihad Airways previously deployed the aircraft type at BOM (regular flights continued until 2017, with brief use in 2024-2025). Lufthansa still operates on routes to Delhi and BOM (until October 2026). Singapore Airlines' A380 also continues to operate in Delhi and BOM. In November, Emirates' A380 schedule to India includes daily Dubai to Bengaluru (21:35-2:40+1) and return (4:30-7:10), daily Dubai to Mumbai (21:40-2:15+1) and return (4:15-6:05), and daily Dubai to Delhi (21:30-2:10+1) and return (4:10-6:35).

Booking data for the 12 months ending April 2026 shows that nearly 590,000 Delhi passengers (over 1,600 per day on average) connected to other flights via Emirates in Dubai. The data indicates that approximately 44% of passengers traveled to or from Europe, followed by North America (29%), Africa and the Middle East each at 12%, with the remainder traveling to or from Latin America and Oceania. The United States is the largest country market, followed by the United Kingdom, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Germany, South Africa, Spain, France, and Switzerland. At the city level, London ranks first, followed by Toronto, San Francisco, New York, Milan, Seattle, Los Angeles, Paris, Manchester, and Johannesburg. With half of the top ten cities located in North America, the A380 flight schedule has been arranged as described above.