Despite this in 2010 Emirates ordered an additional 32 A380s, bringing to a total of 90 superjumbos for the airline.
With all this expansion, the airline needed more space at its Dubai hub. Dubai International Airport's Terminal 3 was built exclusively for the use of Emirates at a cost of US$4.5 billion and is the largest building in the world by floor space. It opened in 2008, with an expansion to the new concourse 3 in 2011 be exclusively for the A380- 800.
Emirates however has had its troubles. Passenger loads haven’t been as good as expected to the US, and Emirates abandoned using the A380 to JFK for some time. Equally, loads to Australia have been poor, mainly due to the cramp Boeing 777, and the hideously early morning flight to Dubai. As a result one of the three daily Sydney flights was suspended in 2010.
Auckland The original Lounge, open 2003-2011
Equally troubled has been Emirates relationship to Sri Lankan airlines, which it half owned and managed. In 2008 it walked away from the deal, selling the airline back to the Sri Lankan government, because Emirates stated that the Sri Lankan Government was seeking control over the day-to-day business of the airline, including regularly throwing off passengers to allow officials to travel without warning. The catalyst for this event was when the Sri Lankan President, Mahinda Rajapaksa and his entourage of 34 on a shopping trip to London tried to take the seats of tourists on a fully booked flight. The airlines management said no, so the government threw them out of the country.
The airline ranks amongst the top ten airlines in terms of passengers flown, and has become the largest airline in the Middle East in terms of revenue, fleet size, and passengers carried.