Emirates CEO Issues Public Apology Following UAE Floods, Nearly 400 Flights Grounded Due to Unprecedented Rainfall

Emirates' CEO apologizes publicly after UAE floods force the grounding of nearly 400 flights due to unprecedented rainfall. This event underscores the disruptive impact of extreme weather on air travel and emphasizes the need for preparedness and response strategies in affected regions.

Emirates CEO Recognizes 'Unacceptable' Passenger Delays, Details Airlines' Imperfect Efforts to Resume Operations

Following the havoc wreaked by record-breaking rainfall, causing widespread flight disruptions across the UAE, Emirates CEO Tim Clark released an open letter on Saturday, aiming to address the concerns of disgruntled passengers during the tumultuous five-day period.

Here is the letter in full:

"This week has been one of the toughest for Emirates operationally, as record storms hit the United Arab Emirates.

"We extend our deepest apologies to every traveler impacted by the disruptions during this period.

On April 16th, the UAE encountered its most intense rainfall in 75 years, accompanied by fierce storm winds that paralyzed activities across the cities. Despite our 24/7 hub in Dubai remaining operational, flight operations were scaled back for safety precautions. However, inundated roads hindered the accessibility of our customers, pilots, cabin crew, and airport staff to the airport, as well as the transportation of essential supplies such as meals and flight amenities.

To mitigate the impact of the adverse weather conditions on Tuesday, we redirected numerous flights. However, over the subsequent three days, we regrettably had to cancel close to 400 flights and experienced significant delays as our hub operations grappled with staffing and supply shortages."

We made it our top priority to support customers affected by the disruptions and restore our operational efficiency.

In order to allocate resources and capacity to address the needs of impacted customers as a primary concern, we took several measures, including suspending check-in services for departing passengers from Dubai, implementing a ticket sales embargo, and temporarily ceasing connecting passenger traffic from various points across our network to Dubai.

Additional resources were mobilized to assist our airport and contact center teams in rebooking efforts, and extra flights were scheduled to destinations where significant numbers of displaced customers were identified.

Over 100 employee volunteers were dispatched to provide assistance to disrupted customers at Dubai Airport departures and in the transit area, with a focus on prioritizing medical cases, elderly individuals, and other vulnerable travelers. To date, we have secured over 12,000 hotel rooms to accommodate affected customers in Dubai, issued 250,000 meal vouchers, and provided increased quantities of drinking water, blankets, and other essential amenities.

Behind the scenes, thousands of employees from across the organization worked tirelessly to restore our operations to normalcy.

As of this morning, Saturday, April 20th, our regular flight schedules have been reinstated. Passengers who were previously stranded in the airport transit area have been successfully rebooked and are currently en route to their destinations. Furthermore, we have established a dedicated task force to manage, reconcile, and deliver approximately 30,000 pieces of baggage that were left behind to their respective owners.

Although our efforts have made significant strides, it will require several more days to fully clear the backlog of rebooked passengers and baggage. We sincerely ask for our customers' patience and understanding during this time.

We acknowledge that our response has not been flawless. We understand and recognize the frustration experienced by our customers due to congestion, lack of information, and confusion within the terminals. The prolonged queues and wait times have been undeniably unacceptable, and for that, we extend our deepest apologies.

We are deeply committed to upholding our promise to our customers, and we have gleaned valuable insights from the events of the past few days to rectify the situation and enhance our processes.

I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude and recognition to the teams throughout the airline, as well as our numerous suppliers and partners, for their unwavering dedication and tireless efforts throughout this challenging week. Despite the adverse conditions, they worked tirelessly around the clock to assist customers, restore our network, and return our operating schedule to normalcy.

Lastly, I want to reiterate, on behalf of myself and all Emirates teams, our sincerest apologies to each and every customer impacted by this disruption.

We remain committed to striving to meet your expectations and delivering on our Fly Better brand promise.

Source: khaleejtimes