Emirates Flies its Flagship A380 to Bali 

An Emirates A380 taxis after landing in Bali.
Photo Credit: Emirates
Indy Udol 6 Min Read
6 Min Read

The 1st of June 2023 saw a new milestone achieved for Bali’s Denpasar Airport, as Emirates sent their Airbus A380 to the tourist island. This latest milestone marks the first ever regular scheduled A380 service to Indonesia.

Bali’s Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport is the first airport in Indonesia to welcome a regular A380 service. 

The inaugural flight


The historic flight of Emirates flight EK368 left its home base in Dubai at 03:10 hours and touchdown in Bali at 16:20 hrs. The return flight, EK369, will depart Bali at 19:40 hrs and touch down in Dubai at 00:45. These times are shown in local times. 

The flagship A380 was welcomed by the expected spectacular water cannon salute as it landed safely and smoothly in Bali. The flight was greeted with much fanfare from passengers and locals alike.

Photo Credit: Emirates

At Bali airport, there were many VIPs present to commemorate the historic moment: His Excellency Abdulla Salem AlDhaheri, the UAE Ambassador to Indonesia, and Orhan Abbas, Emirates Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Far East.

A further host of dignitaries included: Professor Wihana Kirana Jaya, Special Staff for Economic Affairs & Transportation Investment to the Minister of Transportation; Ni Made Ayu Marthini, Deputy Minister for Marketing, Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy; Faik Fahmi, President Director of PT. Angkasa Pura I; and I Wayan Koster, Governor of Bali Province; as well as Zubin Karkaria, Chief Executive Officer of VFS Global.

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Commenting on the new historic moment: Orhan Abbas, Emirates Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Far East reflected on the event: “We are extremely excited that our iconic A380 aircraft has arrived in Bali. This has been the result of months of careful planning and execution.”

“The commencement of our A380 operations in Indonesia is also an extension of our long-standing commitment to the market and a testament to the solid partnership we have with the I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport and the local authorities.”

“We look forward to offering our A380’s best-in-class services to our valued customers flying to and from Denpasar, while simultaneously serving the increased demand for international travel with the Superjumbo being one of two daily services to the island.”

Mohammad Al Attar, Emirates Country Manager for Indonesia, said, “The deployment of our iconic A380 aircraft on flights to Denpasar will significantly contribute to serving the increased customer demand”.

“We’re pleased to achieve this milestone that will greatly strengthen our operations in Indonesia, as well as future commercial plans for the market.” 

Photo Credit: Emirates

Faik Fahmi, President Director of PT Angkasa Pura I, said, “We are pleased to welcome the Emirates A380 aircraft to Bali’s I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport.”

“This represents a triumphant achievement for Indonesia’s aviation industry, and specifically for Angkasa Pura I. We hope this momentum will serve as a catalyst to recover and revive tourism and the economy in Bali and in Indonesia.”

Handy Heryudhitiawan, General Manager of I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport, said, “the Ministry of Transportation, in collaboration with Angkasa Pura I and the Emirates team, examined the airside and landside facilities at Bali’s I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport to ensure it meets the requirements to serve Airbus A380 flights.”

“We have prepared garbarata or aviobridge with two trunks to allow passengers to board and disembark between the aircraft and the airport terminal while we’ve also facilitated specific parking arrangements surrounding the Airbus A380. “

“Through our frequent joint coordination meetings with key stakeholders including the Airport Authority, I Gusti Ngurah Rai Bali Air Force Base, Ground Handling, and other relevant parties at the airport, we will ensure the A380 operations will continue to run smoothly.”

Best to Bali


For those who want to indulge in a luxurious service to Bali, whether for business or holiday, many from the Middle East, Europe and North America now have the choice to indulge on the three-class configured jumbo-jet instead of the 777, famed for the wrong reasons, with its 2-3-2 business class configurations.

The A380, offers superior products from the 777s, with its award-winning first-class cocoon, lie-flat all aisle access Business class seats, and a bar. 

Emirates in Indonesia


Back in 2015, the Emirati carrier launched a non-stop daily service from Dubai to Balu back in 2015. It’s scheduled flight to Jakarta actually began in 1992, signifying the importance of the Indonesian market to the airline.

With 28 weekly flights to Indonesia, it offers increased connectivity to 29 other domestic cities in Indonesia through its strong partnership with Garuda Indonesia and Batik Air. 

With Emirates introducing the first-ever A380 service to Indonesia, this creates a larger marketing footprint for the airline in Indonesia.

It shows its long-standing commitment to the Indonesian market, and also carries more tourists to Indonesia per flight, which presents a win-win situation for all.

Moreover, earlier this year, Emirates inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Indonesia’s Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy at the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai, to continue promoting Indonesia as a preferred destination in Asia.

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