Fly Emirates…No More?

Emirates is probably one of the most successful airlines in the world. While other airline companies are struggling, Emirates is continuing to grow to a point that its rivals are so jealous and are tying every trick in the book and placing all sorts of barriers to stop Emirates.

Emirates has positioned itself as a premium airline, having very unique cabins, in-flight entertainment and lots of services that other airlines do not offer. I have been flying on Emirates for a while and I am or I should say was a big fan. The service that Emirates has been providing over the past few years has been exceptional, and even though the price is a bit more expensive compared to its competitors, I used to say that it is worth it. At least as UAE Nationals we take pride in having such a company and strong brand and most of us like to fly on Emirates to support of a national company in spite of the price discrimination.

That has changed however over the past two years. While the airline is continuing its growth, the service it is offering is no longer the same. Being a frequent traveler on Emirates, I have observed that their service has been going from really good, to bad, to terrible. The biggest problem on most of their flights is the poor attitude and service by the flight attendants, which many have witnessed in recent years. On my last trip to Dubai from Seoul, the cabin crew was not prepared at all for the flight, and was very passive in the way they handled the flight. I was shocked that they have missed the basics. For example the flight was seconds from taking off until one of the attendants realized that the overhead cabins were not closed and had to rush to close them. On my way back to Seoul, the mess started even before getting on board. The way they have ushered people into the plane was a chaos, no proper lines or separations. There was only one staff to manage such a busy flight and rather than using a mic, he was shouting to ask passengers to get on board. Not the type of service you expect at Dubai Airport and specially with Emirates. On board, the seat arrangements were a disaster. My seat was literally in the middle of the isle. I had to almost hold my feet to my chest to make sure that people will not step on them as they cross the isle. It was a complete shock. It seems that they tried to cramp as many seats as possible to answer to the demand they have, but this was simply not appropriate.

I thought I was the only one experiencing this decline in service, but when I googled Emirates Airlines, I found that they have a lot of angry customers who have started online campaigns to express their disappointments. I have recently been on Korean Air and Asiana for short trips to and from Japan and was very impressed by the service they offer. It is sad to say, but I think Emirates need to come and learn from them.

As companies grow, it is expected that they will face challenges, but if they want to sustain their growth then, they need to be consistent with their offer. It is very sad to see that the “Emirates Experience” is no longer as good as it used to be. I sincerely hope that they will realize that they have problems and will try to fix them soon. For me, I have decided not to fly on Emirates anymore, at least for now!