The Captain Has Switched On The Fasten Seatbelt Sign

Emirates airline is looking at low-cost long haul options in the face of new competition

“We have players in all arenas, Europe, America, Asia. It’s a gathering storm”

- Andrea Rothman

Emirates President Tim Clark said he’s braced for a “gathering storm” as low-cost airlines encroach on the inter-continental routes around which the world’s biggest international carrier has built its business.

Dubai-based Emirates sees threats across all long-haul markets from rivals spanning Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA to the Scoot unit of Singapore Airlines Ltd., Clark said Thursday. The Gulf company may also need to establish a short-haul fleet as Mideast nations it has struggled to serve begin to open up, he said.

“For a long time people thought low-cost long-haul wasn’t economically possible,” Clark said at the Bloomberg Berlin Forum. “I didn’t believe it to be the case. Now aircraft makers are producing aircraft that can go for far longer quite cheaply, and it’s up to us to recognize that, and look at how we adapt.”

Clark, 67, said a decision on whether to move away from an all-wide-body fleet and add narrow-body jets to target local markets will be one for his successor. He added that while he sees no immediate switch, it would be “remiss” to commit to a particular plan and that “others coming behind may take a different view,” giving the strongest hint yet that his time in charge may be drawing to a close.

Emirates has established itself as the biggest carrier serving international routes by transforming Dubai into a hub for flights from the Americas and Europe to the Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa. Until now the economics of operating only the biggest planes filled with hundreds of transfer passengers has allowed its economy-class fares to easily undercut most competitors.