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Emirates ends Airbus A380 flights at four US airports

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Emirates ends Airbus A380 flights at four US airports
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Airbus A380 | Airbus

Emirates has stopped operating its Airbus A380 aircraft to four US airports: Boston Logan, Chicago O'Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, and Orlando. The airline continues to fly the A380 from Dubai to Houston Intercontinental, Los Angeles, New York JFK, San Francisco, and Washington Dulles. Among these, New York JFK receives the most A380 flights with three daily services.

The A380 was last used on Emirates' Dallas/Fort Worth route between October 2014 and February 2016. According to Cirium Diio data, the superjumbo replaced the Boeing 777-200LR for this period. "The A380 operated daily, providing an additional 446 seats for sale each day. No wonder the seat load factor suffered. According to US Department of Transportation data, the airline filled 84% of the available capacity between January and September 2014, when the Triple 7 was flown. Between October 2014 and February 2016, when the A380 operated, it fell to 66%. Seven months had loads of less than 60%. The consequences of this (with the same daily frequency) were obvious."

Other airlines have also used the A380 at Dallas/Fort Worth. British Airways flew it from July 2022 to March 2025; Qantas operated it from September 2014 to April 2020 and plans a return in August 2025.

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In Boston, Emirates began regular A380 service in June 2019 after testing airport infrastructure with a one-off flight in January 2017. "Boston fits into this category. To test the airport's infrastructure, its first A380 service touched down on January 26, 2017... Emirates' regular A380 service existed between June 2019 and January 2020, when a daily flight was available. It replaced the 777-300ER." During this period, passenger load factors remained strong at about 87%, similar to previous years with smaller aircraft. However, despite higher passenger numbers due to increased capacity—34% more than before—the combination of pandemic impacts and fare challenges led Emirates to end regular A380 flights in early 2020.

British Airways and Lufthansa have also provided seasonal or ongoing summer A380 service at Boston Logan.

At Orlando International Airport and Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Emirates only deployed its A380s for special occasions rather than regular scheduled flights. "Emirates used the A380 to Orlando nearly a decade ago, on September 1, 2015. This one-off round-trip operation was simply to celebrate the carrier's arrival in the Florida city." For Chicago O'Hare: "On July 19, 2016, Emirates' A380 touched down in Chicago O'Hare for the first time. This was to test various infrastructure developments ahead of handling regular flights aboard this type." Since then all services at both airports have reverted back to Boeing triple seven aircraft.

British Airways previously offered some seasonal or limited-time A380 operations at both Orlando and Chicago O'Hare but no longer does so as of late December or earlier.

Emirates remains based at Dubai International Airport as its hub since being founded in United Arab Emirates in 1985 under CEO Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum.

Organizations Included in this History
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