UAE national carrier Emirates announced recently that it will launch daily flight services to St Petersburg from Dubai effective November 1, 2011.

St Petersburg is situated on Baltic coast. It is often referred to as ‘Northern Capital’ of Russia.

With around 4.6 million population, St Petersburg is considered as Europe’s third largest city. The passenger demand will most likely be tourist driven. Besides, St Petersburg also has a considerable expatriate community boosted by manufacturing and oil sectors.

With the start of the flight services, St Petersburg will be the most northerly point of Emirates’ network.

Emirates in a statement said that it will be deploying Airbus A330-200 and A340-300 on the St Petersburg-Dubai route. The passengers on this route will be offered First, Business and Coach (Economy) class travel.

The airline has been serving the Russian capital Moscow ever since 2003. It is currently operating double daily flights to Moscow.

Expressing his happiness regarding the launch of flight, His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates, said that the success of Emirates’ flight services to Moscow demonstrates that demand from this market still exists, and Russia has a great potential.

Sheikh Ahmed further said that for quite some time a nonstop service to St Petersburg was being considered, and the conditions are conducive now to launch the services. Highlighting the qualities of St Petersburg as a tourist destination, Sheikh Ahmed said that every year the city attracts a large number of cruise visitors and tourists. St Petersburg is famous around the world for its fascinating history, arts and culture, and its grand architecture.

Russian tourists also consider UAE as a major destination. Thousands of investors from Russia have made the UAE as their home.

With the start of the new St Petersburg-Dubai service, Emirates is hoping to satisfy the growing demand of Russian tourists, while at the same time aiming to provide better links with Asian markets.

Flight Schedule:

Dubai-St Petersburg

Flight EK137 – Departure: 1035 hrs – Arrival: 1615 hrs

St Petersburg-Dubai

Flight EK136 – Departure: 1745 – Arrival: 0035 hrs (next day)