Emirates, the
Dubai-based international airline carrier, was awarded "Best Airline" at the second annual South African Tourism Ubuntu Awards, honoring its business and leisure trade partners, at the St. Regis Hotel in New York City on April 7, 2011.
"This award is proof that Emirates commitment to South Africa, offering passengers more choices and flexibility, as well as enabling them to connect seamlessly to a wide range of onward destinations has resonated with our customers," said Emirates Vice President, Sales Michael Page, who accepted the award.
Emirates recently launched a second daily nonstop flight to Cape Town from Dubai in March 2011, operated by an Airbus 340-500 aircraft in a three-class configuration, providing 12 luxurious First Class private suites, 42 angled lie-flat beds in Business Class and 204 generously-sized Economy Class seats.
"South Africa and the United Arab Emirates enjoy a thriving trade and investment relationship, and being recognized by South Africa Tourism Ubuntu Awards, in addition to our second daily service to Cape Town, will help boost this further by supporting new business and tourism opportunities," added Page.
The word Ubuntu connotes the essence of being human – it speaks to interconnectedness, the fact that you can’t exist as a human being in isolation. Noted travel authority and editor for CBS-TV Peter Greenberg served as Master of Ceremonies for the awards presentation.
While flying to Cape Town on Emirates, passengers in all classes can experience the award-winning ice entertainment system, which features more than 1,200 channels of on-demand, including the latest blockbuster movies, 100 TV channels, more than 500 audio channels, 100 video games, plus real time news, sports and business headlines.
The naming of Emirates as the "Best Airline" to South Africa, and the strengthening of Emirates’ South African routes, comes after the airline helped to support the country's hugely successful hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. As an official FIFA Partner, Emirates helped to bring the world to South Africa by flying in football fans from across its network of six continents.
Emirates currently serves 19 passenger and cargo destinations across the African continent, via its Dubai hub. The new Cape Town frequencies will mean that Emirates now flies 42 times a week to its three South African gateways: Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town.
For more information on Emirates in the U.S. please visit
www.emirates.com/usa.
