At 13.3 inches, the seatback TV screens will also be the largest in the cheap seats on any carrier. Twelve seats have no seat in front of them and vast legroom, and can be reserved for a fee. These are the best value long-haul seats you can buy, and a lifesaver if you have to go to Australia at the back of the bus.
Upstairs, the 76 new business-class suites will have new quilted cream leather seats and new lighter wood veneer. The overhead bins on each side will be removed to create a greater sense of space. The bar will have a larger sofa on one side and a table for four on the other. All the new seats will have seatbelts, so you don’t have to abandon your champagne if it gets choppy.
The walls of the 14 first-class suites will be higher and the seat wider and better upholstered. First-class passengers will get new pyjamas and slippers and can use the upgraded showers. Unlike most other carriers – including arch rival Qatar Airways – Clark is committed to first class because “demand is maxed out”.
Motifs of the ghaf tree, a symbol of the United Arab Emirates, will be added on walls across the jet, including in the showers. All the carpets will be replaced. All the refurbished jets will offer superfast Wi-Fi that is reliable (BA, take note).
Emirates bought just under half of the 251 A380s Airbus built before Airbus scrapped the programme and it now operates three-quarters of the number of jets still in service – as well as BA, Singapore Airlines and Qantas, the other operators are Qatar Airways, Etihad, Korean Air, ANA and Thai Airways.