Officials of Emirates Airlines have announced that flights to and from Afghanistan have officially begun, and the route will maintain seven roundtrip flights between Dubai and Kabul a week.
After the arrival of Fly Dubai and Arabian Air flights in Afghanistan, Emirates Airlines marks another, major addition to the list of world commercial airlines operating in Afghanistan, which didn't have any commercial airline activity just 13 years ago.
"Starting Emirates Airlines flights to Afghanistan sends a strong message of encouragement for other companies," Emirates Executive Director Adel Reza said. "We say that this country is a suitable place for investment and our arrival will provide further investment opportunities in other fields as well."
Kabul is the 138th destination on the Emirates route network and its 78th country. The Airbus A340-500 is expected to be the aircraft operating the Dubai-Kabul route.
The Independent Aviation Office has welcomed Emirates Airlines and reported efforts to bring other major world aviation companies to Kabul.
They also said they would be keeping a close eye on companies as the market expands and see greater foreign involvement.
"We will try to prevent violations and legally act against domestic or foreign companies with unhealthy competition practices," Director of the Aviation Office Captain Hamed Zahir said.
At the moment, including Emirates, eight other foreign companies fly to Afghanistan.