What to Know
Emirates is reportedly close to winning approval for a new fifth-freedom route between Milan and Lima, potentially the first step in a much larger long-haul push from its Italian hub.
In This Article
What a fifth-freedom flight actually is, and how Emirates already uses one to fly Dubai-Milan-New York.
The other cities, including Los Angeles, São Paulo, and Mexico City, sources say Emirates is also eyeing from Milan.
Why the move could be as much about challenging Lufthansa-owned ITA Airways as it is about reaching Lima.
Why Dubai to Lima is too far for Emirates to fly non-stop, forcing it through Milan instead.
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Dubai-based mega airline Emirates wants to launch a new ‘Fifth-Freedom’ service between Milan, Italy, and Lima, Peru, although this might just be the start of a larger expansion for the airline from the Italian commercial hub, with sources claiming Emirates is also eyeing links between Milan and Los Angeles, São Paulo, Santiago de Chile, and Mexico City.
Sources cited by Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera claim Emirates is close to winning authorization from the government to operate the fifth-freedom flight between Milan Malpensa (MXP) and Lima (LIM), although a final decision has yet to be granted.
Emirates has long used Milan Malpensa as a base for one of its controversial Fifth Freedom flights operating from its home hub in Dubai to New York JFK via a stopover in Milan. The airline won approval from the Italian government to start the route in 2013, although Emirates faced several legal challenges by local airlines and trade groups.
Fifth Freedom Flight: In which an airline operates a route from its home country to a second country via a third country (For example, Dubai is in the first country, New York JFK is in the second country, and Milan is in the third country). The airline is allowed to sell tickets for these flights in several ways:
Between Dubai and Milan
Between Dubai and New York JFK
Between Milan and New York JFK
Rather than a true Open Skies agreement, Emirates must obtain government approval for each Fifth Freedom flight it wants to launch from Italy. Sources claim approval for Fifth Freedom flights between Milan and Lima could come as early as October, although Emirates might not immediately make use of these rights.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Emirates remained coy about the carrier’s plans, saying only: “At the moment, Emirates has no immediate plans to activate flights to Lima, Peru.”
“We continuously evaluate the performance of existing routes and examine expansion opportunities based on demand, market conditions, aircraft availability and a number of other factors,” the statement added
Lima might seem like an interesting choice for Emirates, although the airline has been trying to increase its presence in South America for some years. Aircraft range limitations, however, make non-stop flights between Dubai and the continent difficult.
For example, the so-called great circle distance (the shortest route possible) between Dubai and Lima is around 8,000 nautical miles. That distance is technically possible with Emirates’ small subfleet of Boeing 777-200LR aircraft but only just, and it would still require payload restrictions that might make the route less financially feasible.
In order to access other markets in South America, Emirates has already launched several other Fifth Freedom services.
Between Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and Buenos Aires, Argentina
Between Miami, United States, and Bogota, Colombia
Between Barcelona, Spain, and Mexico City, Mexico
The case for launching a non-stop flight between Milan and Lima is strong. According to Corriere Della Sera, more than 150,000 passengers a year travel from Milan to Lima, but without any direct flights, they have to make a connection elsewhere to reach their final destination.
Emirates would, however, be potentially ‘stealing’ passenger traffic from the likes of Air France, Iberia, and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, which already operate non-stop flights from their respective European hubs to Lima.
You can’t help but wonder, however, if the bigger play from Emirates is to give ITA Airways, now majority-owned by German flag carrier Lufthansa, a run for its money. ITA Airways has concentrated its long-haul network out of its Rome hub, utilising Milan as a short-haul hub.
What the sources quoted by Corriere Della Sera claim is that Emirates is hoping to effectively establish its own long-haul hub out of Milan, making it difficult for ITA Airways to compete on long-haul routes, while also taking connecting passengers out of the market.
And could this be linked to Emirates’ long-simmering feud with Lufthansa over access to Berlin? Lufthansa has successfully lobbied to keep Emirates out of Berlin for years, despite the very best efforts of Emirates president Sir Tim Clark to gain greater access to Germany.
Earlier this year, it was revealed that Israel offered Emirates so-called Seventh Freedom flight rights for services between Tel Aviv and New York and Bangkok. The offer was to lure Emirates back to the country, but, so far, at least, the airline has not been persuaded to return to Israel after axing flights in the aftermath of the October 7, 2023, terror attacks in the country.
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Mateusz Maszczynski honed his skills as an international flight attendant at the most prominent airline in the Middle East and has been flying ever since… most recently for a well known European airline. Matt is passionate about the aviation industry and has become an expert in passenger experience and human-centric stories. Always keeping an ear close to the ground, Matt’s industry insights, analysis and news coverage is frequently relied upon by some of the biggest names in journalism.