The Australian Business Council Dubai (ABCD) today announced Qantas and Emirates as its official airline partners.

Australian Business Council Dubai Chairman Mr Craig Holding said the two airlines would provide a range of new opportunities to ABCD members and businesses within the region.

“Qantas and Emirates are national icons in their home markets and two of the biggest names in global aviation. The partnership they started in March is already helping to strengthen ties between Australia and Dubai,” said Mr Holding.

“We are very pleased to welcome Qantas and Emirates as sponsors of the Council,” Mr Holding added.

Australia’s investment relationship with the UAE was already valued at over a billion Australian dollars per annum prior to the new Qantas and Emirates partnership.

Australia sits within the top 10 export destinations for the UAE but has significant opportunity beyond just tourism with importing, particularly as Australian resources such as car manufacturing, fresh produce and iron ore are already well established. Plus with over 16,000 Australians and 350 Australian companies in the UAE, we are proud to welcome our national carrier to the Middle East region.

Qantas International CEO Mr Simon Hickey said the sponsorship of ABCD would provide greater trade and business opportunities between Australia and Dubai.

“Qantas has been operating in and out of Dubai for two months and already we’ve carried approximately quarter of a million passengers through Dubai,” said Mr Hickey.

“Many of our customers are choosing to stopover in Dubai on their way to Europe and similarly, large numbers of Emirates customers are booking on the Qantas domestic network. This is creating an economic and cultural exchange that can only strengthen relationships.

“In the first two months of the partnership, the number of Emirates customers booked to travel on Qantas’ domestic network was up almost seven times compared with our previous partnership arrangement.”

Emirates’ Vice President, Commercial Operations (UAE) Badr Abbas, said Emirates may be better known for sponsoring sports, but Emirates are also a good friend to business.

“Our sponsorship of the Australian Business Council Dubai, on the back of the landmark Emirates-Qantas partnership, is a fine example of our support for the business community,” said Badr Abbas.

“In the same way that we’ve seen an upsurge in passengers travelling between Australia, the MENA region and Europe as a result of the Emirates and Qantas deal, we also expect to see a similar boost to trade, supported by the new ABCD partnership.”

The sponsorship is a two year deal and involves the ABCD providing an avenue for Qantas to consolidate its position within the UAE business community along with the support of Emirates. Through a combination of proactive business networking and social events tied around the Australian calendar, along with effective joint marketing, this natural partnership can only go from strength to strength.

For further information contact Craig Holding, Chairman at ABCD on chairman@abcduae.com