Emirates Airline has just revealed its results for the 2025-2026 financial year (which runs April 1, 2025, through March 31, 2026). Not only has the airline achieved its highest profit ever, but the Dubai-based carrier is the world’s most profitable airline for a second year in a row, once again beating Delta.
In this post:
Details of Emirates’ impressive financial results
Emirates Group has reported a record $6.6 billion profit, while Emirates Airline has reported a $6.2 billion profit (compared to $6.2 billion and $5.8 billion last year, respectively), representing a 16.2% profit margin (which is unbelievably good for the airline industry). Emirates Group also includes ground handling company dnata, though I’ll be focusing specifically on the carrier’s results.
To look at some of the key figures of Emirates’ performance compared to the previous year:
- Revenue increased by 2%, to $35.7 billion
- Passenger and cargo capacity increased by 1%, to 60.6 billion ATKMs
- Passengers carried was down by 1%, to 53.2 million
- Average load factor decreased by 0.5%, to 78.4%
- Passenger yield increased by 4%, to 10.4 cents per revenue passenger kilometer
- Operating costs increased by 2%, with the carrier’s fuel bill decreasing by 7%
- Emirates Group’s total workforce was increased by 8%, to 130,919 employees
Emirates is ending the financial year with its highest ever cash balance of $15.0 billion, up 3% from last year. Furthermore, Emirates Group has declared a dividend of $1 billion to its owner, Investment Corporation of Dubai.
As you may have guessed, the upcoming financial year will likely look a lot different than the past one. And it’s incredible to see Emirates’ results despite the last month of the financial year having some really major challenges (or else I’m sure the airline would’ve done a lot better).
Here’s how Emirates CEO Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum describes these results:
“These outstanding results, despite significant challenges in the last month of our financial year, reaffirm the strength and resilience of the Emirates Group’s business model, which is rooted in safety, excellence, innovation, people and partnerships.”
“For the first 11 months of 2025-26, the picture across the Group was very positive. Strong demand for our products and services was driving revenue, and we were achieving healthy margins thanks to our sustained investments in product, people, technology and brand. Month after month, we were surpassing our targets.”
“On 28 February, military activity massively disrupted global commercial air traffic in the Gulf region, including in the UAE. Emirates and dnata quickly mobilised to support our people and affected customers, protect our assets, and ensure business continuity.”
“We are fortunate to be based in Dubai, where years of infrastructure investments and a cohesive aviation ecosystem has enabled the government to quickly secure safe corridors for commercial flights. Emirates and dnata have since gradually restored operations at DXB. Although we are still operating at a lower passenger capacity than pre-disruption, cargo operations have ramped up to support the movement of essential goods into and through the UAE.”
Yes, Emirates is now more profitable than Delta
Perhaps the most interesting thing about Emirates’ financial results for the past couple of years is that the airline has overtaken Delta as the most profitable in the world. For example, this past year Delta generated a $5 billion profit, so Emirates is about 25% more profitable.
When I write about the financial performance of the Gulf carriers, there are always questions about whether this is all just imaginary math, given that the Gulf carriers are state owned. After all, going back a decade, US airlines spent tens of millions of dollars campaigning to convince us that these are all heavily subsidized airlines that light money on fire (they’ve since changed their tune).
Yes, these results are accurate, and they’re independently audited per international financial reporting standards. However, there’s no denying that the math on some things works differently for an airline like Emirates than many other airlines:
- Emirates has had easier access to attractive financing on account of being government owned, which has allowed the airline to become what it is
- Emirates largely has lower operating costs than other airlines, given that the airline essentially has the same owner as the airport, ground handlers, catering company, etc.
I do think Emirates is “legitimately” profitable, though of course it’s not an apples-to-apples comparison to US airlines in terms of revenue vs. costs. The problem with the A380 for most airlines is that they haven’t been able to scale their operations in a way that works. Emirates has been able to scale its route network unlike any other airline.
The A380 was quite literally created for Emirates’ business model, it’s just a shame that other airlines couldn’t make it work in the same way. One has to wonder what Emirates will look like starting in the early 2040s, when the A380 is no longer in service.
For that matter, I think it’s worth pointing out that even the most profitable US airlines are only sort of profitable in terms of transporting passengers. For example, when you look at the financial results of carriers like American, Delta, and United, you’ll find that the airlines largely don’t actually make money transporting passengers, but rather earn much of their profits through their frequent flyer programs and other means. They’re lucky to breakeven in terms of the cost per air seat mile vs. the revenue per air seat mile.
Emirates is obviously just much more efficient — labor costs are lower, the airline is flying much larger planes with lower per seat operating costs, operating flights in the Middle East is cheaper, etc.
Bottom line
Emirates has reported a record profit for the past financial year, which is its fourth consecutive year of record profits. What’s particularly remarkable is that for the second year in a row, Emirates has overtaken Delta as the world’s most profitable airline.
It’s great to see Emirates continuing to succeed with its business model. The airline has scaled operations with the A380 in a way that no other airline has, and that’s a key part of the carrier’s success. Now, I imagine those increased profits will be coming to an end for the time being, given the current conflict in the region, which is sort of an existential threat to some Gulf carriers.
What do you make of Emirates’ financial results?
It's not news that US legacy airlines have become banks with wings. Last year DL earned 8b in royalties from AMEX. They have done irreparable damage to their brand by removing the financial/quality-of-life incentive for pilots to pick up trips on their off days. The pilot shortage and effect on operations will only get worse once summer flying hits. I wonder how this will reflect in their profits next year.
It would interesting to know...
It's not news that US legacy airlines have become banks with wings. Last year DL earned 8b in royalties from AMEX. They have done irreparable damage to their brand by removing the financial/quality-of-life incentive for pilots to pick up trips on their off days. The pilot shortage and effect on operations will only get worse once summer flying hits. I wonder how this will reflect in their profits next year.
It would interesting to know the revenue breakdown for Emirates. How much do they actually make flying pax? How much do they save by connecting everyone through DXB? What are their other revenue sources such as cargo, loyalty cards, etc?
The people questioning middle east airlines legitimacy seem to be exclusively racist/biased, you didn't hear them saying that about the accounting for western airlines, many of which were state owned or sponsored until recently- several still are, example TAP Portugal.
And almost all major airlines receive state aid in various forms, as they should (for example, government sponsored infrastructure, low interest loans during covid, state-sponsored security, etc). Pretending otherwise is just ignorance.
The difference...
The people questioning middle east airlines legitimacy seem to be exclusively racist/biased, you didn't hear them saying that about the accounting for western airlines, many of which were state owned or sponsored until recently- several still are, example TAP Portugal.
And almost all major airlines receive state aid in various forms, as they should (for example, government sponsored infrastructure, low interest loans during covid, state-sponsored security, etc). Pretending otherwise is just ignorance.
The difference is that the racists don't think brown people can succeed and it blows their warped reality when they do- as with today's maga party in the USA.
Not true Emirates are not the most profitable Airline of the world
The most profitable Airlines is copa Airlines with 22.6 so more of emirates
Eric, one is convinced that you are taking the Micky, or, are you simply trying to out troll Walter Mitty-Dunn? It can be proven that Emirates is ten times more profitable than Copa, even Eskimo wouldn’t exaggerate that much now.
No surprise there. Operating cost for Copa is rock bottom. They pay their employees significantly less than competitors , o clueing pilots. They even make their crew share rooms in the hotel layovers and charge the same and sometimes more than Us airlines.
its clearly fake. easy too be profitable when state owned, fuel is free and the most important thing is maintaining face.
Can we get a citation on the "fuel is free" claim. Thanks.
Some airlines offer BOOK the COOK
Others COOK the BOOKS
theyll cook the books then cook the cook.
“ with the carrier’s fuel bill decreasing by 7%”.
LOL MWAHAHAHA
I shat my pants ..
I'd love to see an apples to apples cost comparison vs other global airlines. EK's fuel, labor, and real estate (rents and landing fees) have to be a fraction of what UA and EU carriers spend.
while there is a desire to compare profitability between DL and EK, not only did EK's financial year end a year after the current war in the Middle East break out which had enormous impact on all of the Gulf countries plus Iran, it is more interesting to look at changes to other global carriers and DL's profitability compared to western carriers.
based on full calendar year 2025 year results, UA generated just 66% of...
while there is a desire to compare profitability between DL and EK, not only did EK's financial year end a year after the current war in the Middle East break out which had enormous impact on all of the Gulf countries plus Iran, it is more interesting to look at changes to other global carriers and DL's profitability compared to western carriers.
based on full calendar year 2025 year results, UA generated just 66% of DL's profits even though UA flew 10% more ASMs and had a labor cost advantage due to so many unsettled labor contracts.
AA generated a very small profit while WN fared a little better. Both are expecting higher revenue performance indicating their revenue strategies are working.
Among Euro legacies, they have hedged jet fuel (largely necessary due to currency since oil is globally priced in USD) so they are not facing the brunt of fuel increases right now and they are also benefitting from the loss of capacity over the Middle East. Ryanair is also heavily hedged so is expecting to be able to ride out fuel price increases.
Asian and Australian/New Zealand carriers of all types are likely to see significantly decreased profits in part because oil prices in that area are now some of the highest in the world since it is so dependent on oil that flows (or is not currently) flowing through the Strait of Hormuz.
the current war has been a huge reset and it the Euro carriers are going to take full advantage of it to reclaim business. Still, the full impact of the war will take months to unwind even when crude and refined oil products start moving again.
The fact that DL has much higher labor costs and makes so much more than its US competitors is the bigger story than that it generates profits on par w/ a Middle East carrier that has been built around undercutting fares between Europe and Asia/Africa/the S. Pacific.
Thanks ChatGPTim
How can one not login to offer you a ‘helpful’ Ronnie …. :-)
Zing!
Of course it is "more interesting to look at" airlines that did not dominate Delta by having a product people actually like and software that actually works. Sorry, Tim. but Delta ain't the best. Never have been, never will be.
Delta does do some things far better than its competitors.
DL has been consistently been the best overall carrier in the Americas on financial metrics - and that is the focus that Ben teed up in this discussion.
While it is always interesting to compare the best of the world in different regions, there is much less of an apples to apples comparison
and the chances are high that EK will not be as profitable...
Delta does do some things far better than its competitors.
DL has been consistently been the best overall carrier in the Americas on financial metrics - and that is the focus that Ben teed up in this discussion.
While it is always interesting to compare the best of the world in different regions, there is much less of an apples to apples comparison
and the chances are high that EK will not be as profitable in the current fiscal year - which ends in December 2026 for DL and March 2027 for EK
it is also very unlikely that any US airline will match or exceed DL's profitability or overall financial position this year.
Tim, as usual, you change the subject. This isn't about Delta vs other domestic airlines. They all suck. This is about Delta vs global competitors, where Delta doesn't even make the Top 10 airlines.
except all airlines don't all suck.
DL is one of the most profitable airlines in the world which is the topic being discussed. Even at just 2/3 of DL's profits, UA is still a pretty profitable airline by global standards.
the fact that you can't admit that DL has consistently been one of the highest valued and most profitable airlines for years doesn't change that they are indeed global leading in some aspects.
Walter Mitty-Dunn at his best.
Walt, we can easily tell when you are cut and pasting the published words of others. You are guilty of attempting to use spurious arguments to bolster your Delta Airlines propaganda claims. The subject article is not about Delta Airlines.
Get with the program lad. Delta Airlines is NOT a world class airline and the sooner you accept that reality, the sooner your sanity will return …. If you were ever sane!
We are all aware that there are risk factors to be faced in the coming financial year. One can count on especially volatile fuel prices, geopolitical instability and of course competitive dynamics to affect all airlines. These could heavily influence year on year profits and rankings.
Although it would be foolish to guarantee a continued title, however, Emirates current strategy and financial strengths make Emirates well positioned to remain at, or, near the top...
We are all aware that there are risk factors to be faced in the coming financial year. One can count on especially volatile fuel prices, geopolitical instability and of course competitive dynamics to affect all airlines. These could heavily influence year on year profits and rankings.
Although it would be foolish to guarantee a continued title, however, Emirates current strategy and financial strengths make Emirates well positioned to remain at, or, near the top in profitability.
With other past ‘high flyers’ dropping down in the World Rankings at this time, compounded by other outside influences, one would not like to bet against Emirates from repeating their success next year too.
Labor must be insanely cheap if they're the most profitable airline with a 78% load factor.
Far more complex than just that, and it's all changing, still. For instance, EK has an all wide-body, relatively modern fleet (low CASM, lots of cargo capacity); prime location (an asset before the war, now a liability); lots of premium, which can be profitable; there used to be no corporate tax, now 9% (since 2023, so more change, but nothing as dramatic as a regional conflict closing airspace, drones hitting airports, and people generally not...
Far more complex than just that, and it's all changing, still. For instance, EK has an all wide-body, relatively modern fleet (low CASM, lots of cargo capacity); prime location (an asset before the war, now a liability); lots of premium, which can be profitable; there used to be no corporate tax, now 9% (since 2023, so more change, but nothing as dramatic as a regional conflict closing airspace, drones hitting airports, and people generally not feeling safe anymore...); and, yes, labor is 'lean' compared to US/Europe (no union, pensions).
EK actually has one of the lowest percentages of new generation powered aircraft; it gets a CASM advantage from low labor costs and large aircraft size. Neither the A380 or 777-300ER (of which EK operates massive fleets) are new generation powered.
Average aircraft size has a huge impact on CASM
Tim, are their new a350s chopped-liver? Bah...
Having lived in the ME, and having 1st hand knowledge of regional pay amongst well qualified professionals, the labor rates are not too different to US carriers. The main savings would be in fuel hedging, government subsidies as EK is a state carrier. lower interest rates on loans, no costs associated with unions.
With the ongoing crisis in the Middle East, Emirates will not be that much profitable in 2027. Delta will become once again the most profitable airline in the world in 2027 if United doesn't overtake them.
Nasir, one reads about the unsatisfactory customer experience suffered by Delta Airlines passengers. This dissatisfaction is echoed in the Delta Airlines position in the World Rankings.
It is very difficult to imagine that much will change at Delta Airlines, to improve their forthcoming performance. If I am mistaken then please feel free to enlighten me.
@AeroB13a
No one can enlighten you better than the one and only Tim Dunn. If unsatisfactory customer experience was something of concern to American then Delta wouldn't be that much profitable every year. Let us hope Tim Dunn passes through your comment.
Thank you Nasir, appreciated.
:-)