The inaugural flight landed at the Essex airport shortly before 2pm on Friday (June 8).

Stansted becomes Emirates seventh UK airport and brings the total number of daily flights between Dubai and the capital to 10.

The route is flown by Emirates’ new three-class Boeing 777-300ER.

It features private first class suites and refurbished business and economy cabins.

All cabins have new seats and upgraded in-flight entertainment systems.

“We decided to add Stansted because we saw an opportunity to directly connect with some of the world’s most popular leisure and business destinations,” said Hubert Frach, Emirates’ divisional senior vice-president commercial operations west.

“Previously, London’s north east, and the wider 7.5 million people that live within Stansted’s catchment areas had to travel into the city, or further, to access airports with global reach.

“Now, this daily flight to Dubai connects passengers seamlessly to Emirates points across the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Australasia.”

Emirates said with a number of major multi-national corporations based in the Cambridge and Peterborough area, such as Airbus, ARM, AstraZeneca and GSK, the route would improve trading and business connections for British companies.

Ken O’Toole, Stansted chief executive, said the launch was a “significant moment” in the airport’s history.

“We are delighted our millions of passengers, based in London and the East of England, will see huge benefits from the direct connectivity between the airport and Emirates hub in Dubai and its vast array of onward connections,” he said.

“The addition of the new Emirates service will provide a further boost to our long-haul ambitions and ultimately save passengers valuable time and money associated with flying from other airports across London.”

In the south east, Emirates’ also operates out of Heathrow and Gatwick, and across the country, out of Birmingham, Newcastle, Manchester and Glasgow. It will launch in Edinburgh in October.

The daily flight from Dubai to Stansted departs Dubai at 9.30am and arrives in Stansted at 2.10pm. The return flight departs Stansted at 9.10pm and is scheduled to arrive in Dubai at 7.05am.