Emirates Airlines Disallows Young Children from Traveling First Class Using Miles

Emirates Airlines, based in Dubai, has recently made a change to their Skywards frequent flier program. Young children under the age of nine are no longer able to travel first class on award tickets or upgrades using miles. This change has caused quite a stir on the internet as it was not announced beforehand, but rather quietly inserted into the terms and conditions of the program.

This new restriction only applies to award tickets or upgrades paid for with miles, meaning that children of any age are still able to purchase first-class tickets or redeem miles for business, premium economy, and economy class on Emirates flights. The airline has not yet issued a statement explaining the reasoning behind this change and it is unclear if other frequent flyer programs, such as Air Canada’s Aeroplan or Qantas Frequent Flyer, will also implement age restrictions for miles redemption on Emirates flights.

The impact of this change on Emirates and its partners’ frequent flyer programs is also uncertain. It is unclear if the airline anticipated a significant decrease in first-class redemptions as a result of this change. Emirates’ first class is known for its luxurious features including private suites, multi-course meals, and even onboard showers and bars on certain aircraft. First-class fares from the U. S. to Dubai can often exceed $20,000 round-trip at the most discounted fare.

Age restrictions for fare-paying or mileage redemption passengers in any class of service are rare in the airline industry. While some airlines do not allow young children or infants to sit in certain sections of their economy class cabins, no other airline has implemented age restrictions for premium cabins for mileage redemption purposes. This is largely due to laws in many countries that require airlines to be accessible to the public, with restrictions only being allowed for safety or security reasons. Some airlines also have age restrictions for children traveling alone, such as Taiwan’s STARLUX which does not allow children under the age of 8 to travel in first class.

It is worth noting that this restriction has not been matched by other airlines in the United Arab Emirates, such as Etihad, or other carriers in the Gulf region, such as Qatar Airways or Saudia. These airlines also offer first class on long-haul flights. However, some airlines do have restrictions for children in premium cabins when it comes to non-revenue travelers, such as employees flying for free or at a discounted rate.

Emirates offers first class on many of their flights from Dubai to North America, with connections to other regions. They currently serve ten U. S. gateways and offer connections throughout the Middle East, Africa, the Subcontinent, and the Asia/Pacific region. These U. S. gateways include Boston, Chicago O’Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston Intercontinental, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, New York JFK, Orlando, San Francisco, Seattle/Tacoma, and Washington Dulles.