The two Dubai-based airlines are joining forces to provide a better overall service to their customers

Emirates and flydubai have announced that they are entering into a partnership agreement designed to offer their customers better travel options across a combined total of over 200 destinations.

While both airlines have shied away from calling it a merger, they are saying that the agreement is “extensive” and will go beyond typical code-sharing standards and include integrated network collaboration with coordinated scheduling.

What does that mean? Well, it appears that both the Emirates and flydubai teams are working together on a number of initiatives that span commercial, network planning, airport operations, customer journey, and frequent flyer programmes alignment.

It’s that last one in particular that has caught our eye as, while nothing official has been announced yet, we suspect that it will mean that you should eventually be able to rack up Skywards points when flying to any one of flydubai’s 95 international destinations. Great news, we say!

HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Group and Chairman of flydubai, said: “This is an exciting and significant development for Emirates, flydubai, and Dubai aviation. Both airlines have grown independently and successfully over the years, and this new partnership will unlock the immense value that the complementary models of both companies can bring to consumers, each airline, and to Dubai.”

The two airlines, which will continue to be managed independently, will also look to streamline their systems at Dubai International, ensuring seamless travel through the ultra-modern airport which is currently the world’s busiest for international passengers.

The partnership is due to roll out over the coming months, with the first signs of the enhanced code-sharing arrangements set to start in the last quarter of 2017. We’ll keep you posted as and when these are announced.

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Image: supplied