Emirates vs Air China

Overview

Emirates is one of the two flag carriers of the United Arab Emirates, alongside Etihad. It was founded on 15 March 1985 and began flying on 25 October 1985. It is headquartered in Al Garhoud, Dubai, and is a subsidiary of The Emirates Group, which is owned by the government of Dubai through the Investment Corporation of Dubai. Emirates is not a member of a major alliance. Its frequent-flyer programme is Emirates Skywards.

Network and hubs

All operations are based at Terminal 3 of Dubai International Airport, which is the only hub. Wikipedia describes Emirates as the world's largest long-haul airline, serving more than 150 cities in about 80 countries across six continents. The infobox lists 148 destinations, so the exact figure varies by date.

Fleet

As of June 2026, Wikipedia lists 266 passenger aircraft and 24 cargo aircraft operated by Emirates SkyCargo. The passenger fleet is all wide-body and includes:

• 116 Airbus A380s (the world's largest operator)
• 127 Boeing 777s (117 777-300ERs and 10 777-200LRs)
• 23 Airbus A350-900s

Per Air Data News, 94 of the A380s were active at the time of that report. President Tim Clark said the active number should reach about 110 by the end of 2026, alongside a US$6 billion cabin retrofit programme.

On board

Emirates offers Economy, Business and, on selected aircraft, First and Premium Economy. Economy seat pitch is 31–32 inches on Airbus aircraft and 34 inches on Boeing aircraft. Premium Economy seats offer up to 40 inches of pitch and a 13.3-inch screen. Business class on the A380 has fully flat beds, and Business passengers can use the on-board bar at the rear. Entertainment is provided by the ICE system. Only some aircraft have Premium Economy so far: 24 A380s had it when the article was written, and a retrofit programme is extending it to older A380s and 777s. Check the aircraft type when booking.

Good to know

• Baggage allowances, change fees and meal details depend on fare and route. Check them on emirates.com before booking.
• Emirates Skywards is the loyalty programme.
• Lounge access depends on cabin and status. This profile does not list lounge details.
• No published on-time performance figure was found for this profile.

Overview

Air China is China's flag carrier, founded on 1 July 1988 and headquartered in the Tianzhu Airport Industrial Zone, Shunyi District, Beijing. It is listed in Shanghai, Hong Kong and London. Its parent, Air China Group, holds 53.46%, and Cathay Pacific holds 18.13%. The airline is a member of Star Alliance. Its frequent-flyer programme is PhoenixMiles.

Network and hubs

According to Wikipedia, the main hubs are Beijing Capital, Beijing Daxing, Chengdu Shuangliu and Chengdu Tianfu, with Shanghai Pudong as a secondary hub. Focus cities include Chongqing, Dalian, Hangzhou, Hohhot, Hong Kong, Kunming, Shenzhen, Tianjin and Wuhan. The airline serves 218 destinations in total (Wikipedia, 2026). The group also includes Shenzhen Airlines, Shandong Airlines, Air Macau and Dalian Airlines, and Air China holds 29.9% of Cathay Pacific.

Fleet

Flightradar24 reported an active Air China fleet of 533 aircraft in February 2026, a mix of narrowbodies, widebodies and regional jets. This makes it the third-largest Chinese airline by fleet. The wider Air China group operated 972 aircraft at mid-2026 (Airbus 452, Boeing 471, COMAC 46, business jets 3), according to the 2026 interim results presentation. It added 17 narrowbodies in the first half of 2026. In July 2026 the board approved the introduction of 15 more A350-900 aircraft (2026 Interim Report).

On board

Air China began offering free on-board Wi-Fi on 15 November 2011, the first Chinese carrier to do so, according to Wikipedia. Cabin layouts, seat pitch and entertainment differ by aircraft type and route. Check the airline's website for the aircraft on a specific flight, as no verified figures were available for this profile.

Good to know

• Cabin baggage: MyBaggage gives the Economy limit as one piece of up to 5 kg and 55 x 40 x 20 cm. Business and First Class passengers may carry up to two pieces of up to 8 kg, according to Stasher.
• Checked baggage: It depends on the route and fare. Third-party guides report 20 kg in Economy on domestic flights. They report two free bags on most international Economy fares such as US–China, but only one on some basic fares. Confirm the allowance on the booking.
• Loyalty: PhoenixMiles is linked to Star Alliance.
• Lounge access, change fees and punctuality figures were not confirmed in the sources used.