Incredible – No Emirates Economy Ticket Available for 13 Days (DXB-LHR)
I am used to last-minute flight bookings and have seen high fares in the past. However, I have never witnessed anything like this.
Emirates has no (zero) economy-class seats available on DXB-LHR route from April 16 to April 28, 2019.
At first I thought it was an error from Google Flights. However, I have checked Emirates website and Skyscanner as well. This is not likely to be a mistake because Business & First fares are showing up. See for yourself:
Note: The rates showing from April 16 – April 28 are Business class fares not Economy.
Details
Emirates operates as many as 6 daily flights from Dubai (DXB) to Heathrow (LHR) – EK1, EK3, EK5, EK7, EK29, EK31. Of these only one flight EK29 will be out of service due to upcoming runway maintenance at DXB airport.
All of these are A380 aircraft. That is approximately 400 economy seats in each aircraft. So, 2,000 economy seats for 5 flights everyday (excluding EK29). And not a single one of them is available from April 16 to April 28 (13 days). Let this sink in.
While I am certain that the upcoming maintenance of runway is a factor, there are two interesting points to note.
- On LHR – DXB route, economy tickets are widely available
- Similarly, there is plenty of availability after April 28, 2019. The maintenance work will continue till May 30, 2019.
Alternatives
Recently, Virgin Atlantic discontinued their service to Dubai. I really wonder why.
If you want to fly non-stop between Dubai and London, you have three options
- Use LGW, STN airports. However, there is no availability in economy from April 20 to April 26
- Fly Premium Economy on British Airways (very limited availability)
- Use Abu Dhabi airport (about an hour from DXB airport)
I am sure even these options will run out soon. If you have to travel during this period, book tickets NOW. I have done mine 🙂
This post was published on April 11, 2019 at 8:30 AM ET.
