Emirates said Thursday it has launched a third daily service between Dubai and Cape Town, with the inaugural flight arriving in the South African city as the airline also introduced its next-generation Airbus A350 to the country for the first time.

In a press release, the Dubai-based carrier said the new service, operated as flight EK778, landed at Cape Town International Airport at 1805 local time, expanding capacity on one of its busiest African routes.

The airline said the Airbus A350, the latest addition to its all-widebody fleet, offers redesigned cabins, increased passenger space, upgraded inflight entertainment, and greater availability of its Premium Economy cabin, which was introduced on South African routes in September 2025.

Afzal Parambil, Emirates' Regional Manager for Southern Africa, said Cape Town has long been one of the airline's strongest-performing destinations in Africa.

"Cape Town has long been one of the most popular destinations on our African network. The launch of a third daily service, operated with our newest aircraft, shows how much we believe in this market," he said.

According to Emirates, the additional Cape Town flight builds on a cooperation agreement signed in April 2026 with Wesgro, the tourism, trade, and investment promotion agency for Cape Town and the Western Cape. The partnership aims to increase visitor arrivals from key markets, including the Gulf region, India, and East Asia.

The airline also noted that it resumed a fourth daily flight between Johannesburg and Dubai on July 1, increasing its South African operations to 56 weekly services from Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Durban. Emirates said it has also deployed a refurbished Airbus A380 on one of its Johannesburg services, featuring its latest cabin interiors and Premium Economy product.

Beyond passenger services, Emirates said the expanded schedule will increase cargo capacity through the belly holds of its Boeing 777 and Airbus A350 aircraft. Through Emirates SkyCargo, the airline transports South African exports, including fresh fruit and vegetables, chilled meat, dairy products, seafood, and cut flowers, to international markets.

Emirates said the additional services are intended to strengthen connectivity between South Africa and its global network while supporting tourism, trade, and cargo operations as demand for travel to and from the region continues to grow.