By RAfiq Vayani
DUBAI: Emirates has taken off to Mexico City, marking the airline’s first passenger flight to Mexico. Emirates flight EK255, departed at full capacity with over 300 passengers, led a group of VIP guests and media on board, at 0330hrs local time this morning.
Marking the importance of this new gateway in the Americas, the high profile delegation onboard the inaugural flight included Salem Obaidalla, Emirates’ Senior Vice President Commercial Operations for the Americas; H.E. Ahmed Hatem Barghash Al Menhali, UAE Ambassador to Mexico; H.E. Francisca Elizabeth Méndez Escobar, Mexican Ambassador to the UAE, Mexican Embassy; Fahad Siddiq Abdulla AlGergawi, CEO, Dubai FDI; Jamal Al Sharif, Chief Officer, Dubai Development Authority; Lieutenant Colonel Ibrahim Hamad Ibrahim Abdalla Al Maazmi, Manager Airport Passport Department, Federal Authority for Identity & Citizenship; Khalid Abdulla Ahmad Mohd Raeialboom, Deputy CEO, Dubai FDI and Jannie Davel, Emirates’ Vice President Cargo Commercial for the Americas, along with other VIPs and a delegation from the UAE, Indian and Singaporean media.
Commanding the first leg of the Mexico City flight this morning was Captain Abdelrazaq Alfahim, a UAE National, Captain Gabriel Noltenius Hahnel, a Mexican National and First Officer Essa Alhammadi, a UAE National.
The aircraft utilised for this morning’s inaugural flight was Emirates’ newly refurbished two-class Boeing 777-200LR which offers 38 Business Class seats in a 2-2-2 layout, and 264 seats in Economy Class. The flight will stop in Barcelona before continuing on its journey to Mexico City.
