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It's been a long time coming, but Emirates has finally officially launched its premium economy cabin on the Airbus A380. While the product itself has existed for some time, it was initially only subjected to a soft launch, with passengers unable to directly book the product. This has now changed on three of Emirates' key routes.

Yesterday couldn't come soon enough

Ever since Emirates revealed the first images of its premium economy cabin in December 2020, the aviation community has been patiently waiting for its official launch. Simple Flying was lucky enough to be able to preview the new product in November, when the airline also confirmed that official sales would start in June.

Following the start of ticket sales for flights with the premium economy cabin onboard, all that was left to do was to get these services in the air. This finally happened yesterday, with Emirates jubilantly sharing the news.

In a concise post that also featured an image of the opulently-outfitted premium economy cabin, Emirates explained that the product offers "luxurious seats, high-quality amenities, and exquisite in-flight dining." The Dubai-based UAE flag carrier is clearly confident in the longevity of the concept, adding that "the future is now."

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Initially available on three routes

Starting yesterday, Emirates officially began using the premium economy cabin on three of the most important routes from its Dubai International Airport (DXB) hub. These serve London Heathrow (LHR), Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG), and Sydney Kingsford Smith (SYD). Of course, these destinations see a raft of Emirates flights, so, for premium economy services, the specific flight numbers are:

• EK1, EK3 (Dubai-London Heathrow) and EK2, EK4 (London Heathrow-Dubai).
• EK75 (Dubai-Paris CDG) and EK76 (Paris CDG-Dubai).
• EK412 (Dubai-Sydney) and EK413 (Sydney-Dubai).

Later this year, Emirates will also launch Christchurch, New Zealand, as a premium economy destination. This will take place in December, with these flights being extensions of the carrier's existing Dubai-Sydney services (EK412/3). Emirates President Sir Tim Clark welcomed the cabin's official launch, stating in May that:

"As with everything we do, Emirates' premium economy will be exceptional in its class, with minute attention given to every aspect of the customer experience. Customers trading up from economy will be getting excellent value."

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What do premium economy passengers get?

So, what exactly are the factors that make premium economy worth the cost of an upgrade for passengers otherwise looking to travel in economy class? Space is a key element, with seats in this section of the Airbus A380 offering an impressive 40 inches of pitch. They are also somewhat wider, at 19.5 inches, meaning that the cabin as a whole features a less dense 2-4-2 configuration.

The 56 premium economy seats also offer eight inches of recline, as well as a sizeable entertainment screen measuring 13.3 inches. Passengers are also given amenity kits, as well as blankets and pillows that are "designed uniquely for premium economy." Furthermore, the catering incorporates parts of Emirates' business class service. Overall, it seems to have been worth the wait!

What do you make of Emirates' premium economy cabin? Will you be looking to sample it on one of the three launch routes in the coming months? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!