Emirates has apologized after tens of thousands of passengers were affected by rain disruption in Dubai. Sir Tim Clark, President of Emirates Airlines, signed the official apology.
Describing last week as “one of the most difficult weeks” in Emirates’ nearly 40-year history, Clark admitted that the airline’s response had been “far from perfect” and that the conditions faced by passengers at Dubai International Airport were “unacceptable”.
Tim Clark said that when the storm hit the United Arab Emirates last Tuesday, the airline initially tried to continue its operations, albeit with reduced air traffic for safety.
The airport was largely able to continue operating, but conditions throughout Dubai were poor. He added, “The flooded roads prevented customers, pilots, cabin crew and airport staff from reaching the airport, and also prevented the movement of essential supplies such as meals and other aviation equipment.” Tim explained.
Essentially, Emirates continued to schedule flights but had no pilots or cabin crew to operate them, while more and more transit passengers arrived in Dubai but ground staff could not get to the airport to help them.
Over the course of three days, Emirates canceled 400 flights, postponed many others, and diverted dozens to surrounding airports because Dubai Airport simply could not handle the disruption due to staff shortages.
Initially, Emirates tried to resume operations by suspending ticket sales, although it soon became clear that the real problem was in the transit area where thousands of passengers were stranded for days.
Clark claims the airline provided 250,000 meal vouchers to passengers stranded at Dubai Airport, while 12,000 hotel rooms were purchased for the most vulnerable passengers.
“Behind the scenes, we have been doing everything we can to support thousands of employees across the organization to get our operations back on track.”Sir Tim continued. “As of Saturday morning, April 20, our regular flight schedules have been restored. Passengers previously stranded in the airport's transit area were rebooked and redirected to their destinations. We have created a workforce to sort, sort and deliver nearly 30,000 pieces of luggage to their owners.
Although normal operations have returned to normal, this does not mean that the backlog has been eliminated. It may take several days for stranded passengers to get where they need to be, and it may take longer for delayed baggage to be returned to its owners.
