Delta basically only operates between the hours of 7am and 11pm. Emirates has 24 hour aircraft utilization with no government oversight and an all widebody fleet to boot.
If you really think making $1.2 billion with the kind of environment Emirates operates in then I hope you are not going to be an accountant in your second career.
I don't think any accountant would say when you hide money that is a good thing for any company. The graft starts getting more and more prevalent with more and more managers wanting their hand in the till. Meanwhile the morale of the frontline troops starts that long but steady downhill slide to oblivion. Look out below.