... to think we secured the EK A380 before JFK got it back, and before HKG and some of the other large airports, Im sorry but thats a major coup!
That's because Emirates (and indeed Etihad and Qatar) have recognised the massive amount of trade they can shift back and forth from the North West through their hubs to destinations not currently served direct from Manchester..... the A380 along with increased frequency is "hopefully" a long term statement of intent in this regard !
True AMS /MUC don't have the A380 BUT Munich does not need them, it already has direct service, (sometimes double daily), to places like Tokyo, Bangkok, Seoul, Beijing, Shanghai, Delhi, Hong Kong, JoBurg, Mumbai !
Many airlines use their European hubs to connect to these cities but Emirates appears to be about to shift numbers on an "industrial scale".
With regard to the A380 route comparisons, Amsterdam is clearly a different proposition, but it is worth exploring the Frankfurt/Munich model, Manchester does compare to MUC both economically and geographically, it is not dissimilar to the Heathrow/Manchester relationship. Unlike the UK however, the German Government and national airline set up a structure to support major intercontinental flights without "total" centralisation at one major hub, Frankfurt.
In the UK and at Manchester especially, Emirates have recognised the void, long may it continue, but please lets not roll over happy with what is nothing more than a "sprinkling" of intercontinental direct flights !
The "regional" argument that diminishes Manchester is presumably based on comparing our route structure with places like Birmingham, Bristol and Newcastle ? but if this is the case it is a poor argument.
These cities are indeed very much "regional", that is a part my complaint with the local media, they are inward looking. Within the EU, the US, and Asia, Manchester is very much a "major international city", Emirates have recognised this and indeed the demand, sadly its own citizens so often fail to see its wider international image and are happy to embrace the "eeeh by gum , whippet and cloth cap culture". (As an aside local media so often then reinforce this stereotypical image. The idiotic weatherman on Granada is a case in point !)
The comparison put forward re Manchester should actually be with a major "International City" and indeed gateway and that is Munich !
I well understand the "commercial hub interests" that prevail at Heathrow but an underlying policy that pretty much sucks "total UK demand" into an airport already at Max capacity and constrained by numerous other factors is at some stage doomed to end in failure. The doom-mongers suggest losing traffic to CDG, AMS etc but I would be more than happy to see a fleet of Emirates A380 operating hourly Emirates flights Ex Manchester if that is the way forward , that said, new government could do worse than look at the German model !