LONDON: In a week that saw pilots across Europe threatening to strike, Emirates has released a tribute to its own cockpit crew.
The one-minute clip published on YouTube is called “A tribute to our pilots” and features a series of images of the 4,000 men and women who helm the Dubai-based company’s planes.
The union that represents Ryanair pilots on Sunday suspended a planned strike — capping a year of industrial relations misery in some of Europe’s big airlines.
But there was no such misery on the faces of the Dubai carrier’s crew that appear in the promotional Emirates video.
Branding experts said it was a well-timed move.
“The timing is terrific,” said David Tarsh, managing director of Tarsh Consulting, a communications agency. “You’ve got airlines with pilots who are not happy, and you’ve got Emirates who are happy to make a virtue of their pilots.”
In the Emirates video, the company brags about flying the largest fleet of Airbus A380s and Boeing 777s to 156 destinations in 84 countries.
In contrast, Ryanair has avoided a pilots’ strike by offering to recognize their unions, a move it has vociferously avoided for years.
To compound Ryanair’s misery, this weekend it was voted joint-worst airline for short-haul travel in a survey of 9,000 Which? members. At the other end of the scale, Emirates was voted second best, after Singapore Airlines in the long-haul segment.
Emirates Airline did not reply to a request for comment.
