Today sees the reintroduction of the first of Emirates’ Boeing 777s to have received a nose-to-tail cabin refresh, on flight EK 83 from Dubai to Geneva. The complete revamp of the aircraft took a total of 37 days, and it has entered service four days ahead of its officially announced deployment schedule. This aircraft is the first of 81 Emirates B777s due to receive an extensive cabin refresh by the airline’s in-house engineering team (Emirates Engineering) in Dubai, as part of an investment by the airline of over US$3 billion to update its customer experience.
The numbers involved in refurbishing just this single Boeing 777 are remarkable. As a few highlights:
- The cabin work was executed by a dedicated team of 175 engineers and technicians at Emirates Engineering in Dubai
- It took 37 days and 18,000 man hours to finish the first B777 as teams operated round the clock in a chronological sequence of work, from the removal of interiors, all the way to reinstallation and testing of the new seats and other cabin components
- The airline has earmarked 191 Boeing 777 and Airbus A380 aircraft for a full facelift as part of the retrofit programme
- Once the project is complete, the airline will have installed 8,104 new premium economy seats, 1,894 refreshed first-class suites, 11,182 upgraded business-class seats, and 21,814 economy-class seats
To deliver the first Boeing 777 refurbished aircraft, the airline used a total of:
- 330 square metres of carpeting
- 340 sheets of laminate
- 8,000 square feet of leather for the seats in first, business and premium economy class
- 800 metres of fabric for the economy-class seats
- 300 litres of paint
The new B777 cabins
The refurbishment of the B777 began in early July, with a major driver of the reconfiguration being to accommodate a 24-seat premium economy cabin (three rows in a 2-4-2 layout). This marks the first installation of a premium economy cabin on an Emirates B777 and is part of a strategy to create a more consistent passenger experience across Emirates’ A380 and B777 fleets. The 19.5-inch-wide seats have been fitted at an 38in pitch, with an 8in recline function and six-way adjustable headrests. The cream leather of the seats is complemented by wood panel finishings across the cabin.
This timelapse video shows how the first Emirates 777 cabin was refurbished by the airline’s in-house engineering team.
The new Emirates business-class cabin for the 777s brings in seats and a colour scheme similar to the design elements in the airline’s A380 cabins, with soft cream leather seats accented with champagne trim, lighter wood panelling, a few technology updates, and direct aisle access for all. The new cabin also adds a small walk-up bar for snacks and refreshments.
The business-class cabin has been fitted with 38 seats in a 1-2-1 configuration, each of which can convert into a spacious flat bed which reclines up to 78.6in. The 20.7in-wide seat also features a padded headrest, a personal mini-bar, a table for dining or working, multiple charging outlets for devices, and a touchscreen controller for seat functions and the 23in HD entertainment screen.
There is also good news for passengers in Emirates’ B777 economy class cabin, which features 256 ergonomically designed seats with adjustable leather headrests.
In addition to Geneva, the airline will deploy its upgraded Boeing 777s with new cabins to Tokyo Haneda and Brussels in the next few weeks as more aircraft are completed, and more destinations to be served with this aircraft type will be announced soon.
