To answer Jim's questions:
You need permission from the company to leave Dubai on days off (but not for annual leave) regardless of the type of ticket you are travelling on, or the airline you are travelling with. In practice permission is (correct me if I'm wrong guys) almost always granted. For now....
There is no jumpseat travel at EK. Only operating crew are allowed on the flight deck from pushback to chocks on.
Hope that's clear.
