Emirates: How One Airline Drives Profit And Passenger Growth « Wheels Up - Forbes.com

It is a quiet night, lit by a half- moon and millions of stars above. Nico is flying the A-332, which left Nice some 6 hours ago (having been in the air for some 18 hours on the last 24 hours, one of the world’s highest utilization rates), and he is now preparing his “heavy” for its final approach to DXB (Dubai airport, third largest airport in the world after London Heathrow and Frankfurt) on runway 30. Check list is completed, runway smoothly hurries closer and larger. Touch down.

In one hour, Nico will be back to his flat, supplied at no cost by his employer, carried there by a private taxi. One hour later, the aircraft he flew will leave for another of the 100 cities that Emirates serves in more than 60 countries.

In a few days, he will get his pay, free of any income tax.