EK are understaff experts. They also normally cut our pay (productivity payments, reduce/remove credit hours) to make their understaffing pay. 760hrs per year was the norm some time ago. And then things changed, and not in a nice way. EK is historically a very lucky airline, and its seniority list shows the demise of the airlines from around the world. They always seem to land on their feet numbers wise.
It would seem the 350-1000 is a non contender, so some of these 773s might be replacements for them. Will tell you for sure in 2020.
the Don