Emirates and France

Emirates has been serving France for over three decades since the launch of Dubai–Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) flights in 1992. Today, we serve France with passenger flights to Paris, Nice and Lyon, as well as a freighter service to CDG. 

Read more about Emirates’ operations in our fact sheet ‘Emirates and France(Opens a PDF in a new tab)’

In November 2019, Emirates confirmed an order for 50 Airbus A350-900 XWB aircraft worth US$16 billion to be delivered from 2024 onwards. Emirates is also the biggest customer of the Airbus A380 by a large margin, with 123 aircraft ordered. Emirates’ A350 and A380 purchases have supported thousands of jobs at Airbus and its suppliers in France.

According to Frontier Economics, the 13 A380 aircraft delivered to Emirates in 2013 alone created a GDP impact of €1.2 billion and supported 14,500 DII jobs in France.

In addition to being a major Airbus customer, Emirates is also a significant customer for aircraft parts made in France, for example, Michelin tires, Sicma Aero Seats from Zodiac Aerospace and Thales avionics. In September 2022, Emirates invested over US$350 million in Thales’ AVANT Up system for its new A350 aircraft. Emirates also directly contributes over €210 million to the French economy each year through operational expenditures such as fuel uplift, over-flight charges, inflight catering, aircraft landing and handling fees, crew layover, staff salaries, advertising and sponsorship.

The UAE is France’s largest export partner in the Middle East. Bilateral trade between France and the UAE exceeded €6.9 billion in 2022, with exports from France to the UAE reaching €4.4 billion—amounting to a €2 billion trade surplus for France. Emirates transports 34,000 metric tons of cargo annually between points in France and Dubai—carrying items such as wine, cheese, perfumes, garments, aircraft parts, medical equipment and electronic products, among others. Dubai is home to 500 of the 1,000 French companies registered in the UAE, and 75% of the 25,000 French nationals that reside in the UAE.

More connectivity equals more jobs. According to Frontier Economics, Emirates’ flights to and from France had a GDP impact of €643 million and supported 6,720 direct, indirect and induced jobs in France. Any future increases in connectivity would help spur French economic growth, lead to an increase in global competitiveness for businesses, facilitate exports, create more jobs and provide for incoming tourism—all in all, creating more value for France.