DUBAI: Sir Tim Clark, President of Emirates airline, issued an open letter to customers, expressing apologies for the travel disruptions caused by record storms that battered the United Arab Emirates this week.
In the letter, Clark acknowledged the unprecedented rainfall on Tuesday, April 16, marking the highest in 75 years for the UAE. The storm, accompanied by fierce winds, severely impacted activities across the cities, including aviation operations, he stated. He said that despite the challenges, Emirates’ 24/7 hub in Dubai remained operational, albeit with reduced flight movements for safety reasons. “Our 24/7 hub in Dubai remained open, with flight movements reduced for safety, but flooded roads impeded the ability of our customers, pilots, cabin crew, and airport employees to reach the airport, and also the movement of essential supplies like meals and other flight amenities,” Clark stated.
The President of Emirates airline said that the airline took swift action by diverting dozens of flights to avoid the worst of the weather on Tuesday and canceling nearly 400 flights over the next three days. He said that the airline faced staffing and supply shortages, necessitating the suspension of check-in services, an embargo on ticket sales, and a temporary halt on connecting passenger traffic to Dubai. “We were clear on our 2 priorities: Look after our customers who have been impacted by the disruption, and get our operations back on schedule,” he stated.
Emirates deployed additional resources to assist affected passengers with rebooking and organized additional flights to accommodate displaced customers. “We deployed additional resources to aid our airport and contact centre teams with rebooking and put on additional flights to destinations where we identified large numbers of displaced customers,” he said. Over 100 employee volunteers were dispatched to provide assistance at Dubai Airport, particularly to medical cases, the elderly, and vulnerable travelers. The airline secured over 12,000 hotel rooms, issued 250,000 meal vouchers, and provided essential amenities to stranded passengers.
Sir Tim Clark said that despite the challenges, Emirates airline’s regular flight schedules were restored as of Saturday, April 20. “As of this morning, Saturday 20 April, our regular flight schedules have been restored. He said that the airline rebooked passengers stranded in transit were en route to their destinations, and a taskforce was established to reconcile and deliver 30,000 pieces of left-behind baggage to their owners. “Passengers previously stranded in the airport transit area have been rebooked and are enroute to their destinations,” he said.
Clark acknowledged the imperfections in Emirates’ response, including congestion, lack of information, and confusion in the terminals, leading to unacceptable wait times and queues. He assured customers that the airline takes its commitment seriously and has implemented measures to address these issues and enhance processes.
Clark extended gratitude to Emirates’ teams, suppliers, and partners for their relentless efforts in supporting customers and restoring normal operations amidst the challenging conditions. He reiterated Emirates’ commitment to fulfilling customer expectations and upholding its “Fly Better” brand promise.
