Emirates celebrates the milestone delivery of its 100th Airbus A380 aircraft at a special ceremony with Airbus at the manufacturer’s delivery center in Hamburg.
Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Emirates’ chairman and CEO officiated the ceremony. He was joined at the event by Sir Tim Clark, president Emirates Airline; Tom Enders, Airbus CEO; Dominic Horwood, Rolls-Royce, director — Customer and Services; Ali Al-Ahmed, UAE Ambassador to Germany and Frank Horch, senator for economy, transport and innovation of the city of Hamburg.
Sheikh Ahmed said: “This is a tremendous moment for Emirates, for Airbus and for our many partners involved in the A380 program. There is no doubt that the A380 has had a big positive impact on aerospace manufacturing and the broader aviation industry, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs and stimulating innovation and new product development in many related areas such as ground handling, catering, airport facilities and cabin products, to name a few.
“Importantly, the A380 also brought the flying experience for our customers to the next level. The aircraft itself is a showpiece of engineering. It is the world’s largest commercial passenger jet but it is quiet and efficient and at Emirates we’ve utilized the onboard real estate to redefine the thinking around inflight products and experience. Our flight crew love to fly it and our customers love to fly in it.”
Horwood said: “We would like to congratulate Emirates on this momentous occasion. We are very proud to be powering their 100th Airbus A380 and look forward to building on our strong relationship in years to come.”
Powered by Rolls-Royce engines, Emirates’ 100th A380 is configured in three cabin classes, with 14 private suites in First class, 76 seats in Business and 426 seats in Economy. It also features the airline’s newly revamped Onboard Lounge. It will be on display at the upcoming Dubai Air Show and will enter service afterwards.
The Emirates A380 program creates and supports manufacturing jobs across the global aircraft manufacturing supply chain. Airbus estimates that Emirates’ A380 orders alone support 41,000 direct, indirect and induced jobs in Europe, including some 14,500 in Germany alone. These are high-skilled jobs and impact a high-value supply chain, creating a significant multiplier effect in the countries where Airbus has aircraft production facilities. The estimated Europe-wide impact of Emirates’ A380 investment amounts to €3.4 billion in GDP in 2013/14. In Germany and France the GDP impact is €1.2 billion for each country.
Emirates welcomes 100th A380 to its fleet
Emirates welcomes 100th A380 to its fleet
RLC Global Forum places Kingdom at center of future of retail
The RLC Global Forum will return to the Saudi capital on Feb. 3–4 to shape the future of retail and consumer-facing industries at a defining moment for growth against a backdrop of shifting cross-border commerce, evolving consumption patterns, and the global AI imperative.
As the world’s economic and cultural gravity continues to shift, Riyadh stands at the intersection of transformation by connecting East and West, tradition and innovation, and providing the ideal stage for this global dialogue.
The forum’s launch coincides with the announcement of two strategic partnerships with Cenomi Centers and Panda Retail Company, highlighting Saudi Arabia’s emergence as a driving force in the global growth narrative.
Speaking to Arab News ahead of the annual forum, Panos Linardos, chairman of RLC Global Forum, said the event enables decision-makers to create a sustainable growth and innovation strategy in retail by monitoring major transformative forces affecting worldwide leaders.
“At the 2026 RLC Global Forum, the priority is not identifying trends — in fact most leaders already see the signals — but understanding how those forces collide and reshape decision-making. This year’s agenda reflects a world at a growth crossroads: capital is more disciplined, consumers are more selective, and traditional operating models are under strain,” said Linardos.
“This year we are focused on three interconnected questions. First, where does enduring growth come from when scale alone no longer guarantees resilience? Second, how are power and value shifting across the retail ecosystem? And third, how do markets like Saudi Arabia move from rapid expansion to sustainable, system-level value creation?” said the chairman.
“We believe that retail does not operate in isolation. That is why the forum is structured to examine these dynamics across retail, real estate, technology, and investment as a single interdependent system. This integrated view, rather than siloed thinking, is where meaningful strategy now takes shape,” he added.
The forum will convene more than 2,000 senior decision-makers in Riyadh, with participants spanning global retail groups, sovereign-linked investors, developers, technology platforms, policymakers, and academic institutions from more than 40 countries.
“What matters most, however, is not scale but composition. You must understand that this is an invitation-only audience shaped deliberately around decision-making authority. CEOs sit alongside ministers, investors alongside operators, and academics alongside practitioners, not to offer commentary, but to interrogate assumptions and test strategies against real-world constraints,” said Linardos.
What distinguishes the forum is its ability to bring global perspectives into direct conversation with regional realities.
“As Saudi Arabia’s role in global trade, tourism, and consumer markets accelerates, that intersection has become increasingly relevant for leaders reassessing how and where growth is built,” he said.
Reports indicate that retail sales in the Kingdom are forecast to reach $161.4 billion by 2028. “The scale of the opportunity is clear, but the more interesting question is how that growth is shaped,” Linardos told Arab News. “Demographics, digital adoption, tourism growth, and large-scale urban development are converging at once. That creates opportunity, but also raises the bar. The next phase of retail growth in the Kingdom will favor models that integrate physical space, digital infrastructure, cultural relevance, and operational discipline.”
At the 2026 RLC Global Forum, many of the discussions center on this transition, he said.
The Kingdom’s advantage lies in its ability to design ecosystems where retail, hospitality, culture, and experience reinforce one another. Creating this long-term, integrated value is a core focus of the discussions at the forum, he added.
Commenting on the forum’s role in the future of the Saudi retail landscape, Linardos said: “Saudi Arabia does not need another conference to showcase ambition. What it benefits from — and increasingly demands — is a platform for informed, global dialogue grounded in execution. The RLC Global Forum plays that role by positioning Saudi Arabia not as a case study, but as a strategic participant in shaping the future of retail and consumer economies.”
“By bringing global leaders into Riyadh, the forum allows for an exchange that is both outward-looking and locally anchored. As the Kingdom moves from rapid transformation to long-term institution building, these conversations become more consequential. The forum is thus a critical catalyst in translating Vision 2030’s ambitions into a resilient, global-market reality,” he added.
The RLC Global Forum is a leading platform that brings together the world’s most influential retail leaders, innovators, and policymakers to drive positive industry change. It marks the next phase of the Retail Leaders Circle’s 12-year mission to connect and empower decision-makers across the retail and consumer-facing sectors.
Through high-level dialogue and strategic cross-industry initiatives, the forum addresses the long-term forces defining the trajectory of retail and its interconnected ecosystems.
Alongside the annual retail forum in Riyadh, the RLC Global Forum curates a calendar of high-profile events around the world, including the CEO Summit in New York and the RLC Fashion Summit in Milan.
