Supporting children’s education and making meaningful connections within the communities it serves, Emirates has engaged with several educational entities across Asia to provide 700 handmade school bags and essential stationery supplies directly to young students.
Each school bag is a piece of history — a limited-edition bag from Emirates’ Aircrafted range, made from the fabrics and parts of Emirates’ iconic aircraft.
With 1300 bags already distributed across Africa, the Asia Aircrafted KIDS delivery is part of a larger initiative by Emirates to repurpose and upcycle materials for the benefit of children across the globe.
In the Philippines, Emirates has long been a partner of Virlanie Foundation, a non-profit organization that aims to help disadvantaged children reach their full potential and reintegrate them into society.
In India, Emirates collaborated with Smile Foundation India, a respected institution that provides education, healthcare, and livelihood programs to children aged 6-14.
In Bangladesh, Emirates partnered with Kanan, Thikana (Shelter Home), and Ahsania Mission Shishu Nagari — three sister entities across Dhaka that provide shelter for women and children and a safe place to nurture education and well-being.
In Pakistan, Emirates worked with SOS Children’s Villages, a renowned entity that serves local communities by creating a nurturing and inspirational space for financially disadvantaged youths to continue their education.
Emirates has a long history of supporting children’s welfare programs through the Emirates Airline Foundation, and Aircrafted Kids is an extension of this work.
Emirates has local offices in India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, so representatives from Emirates visited each entity. They helped pack the bags and distribute them and were eager to connect with the organizations that do such important work in the community.
Complete supplies in a bag
Emirates provided school supplies inside the bags, such as stationary, calculators and essentials, as well as a variety of books that can be shared throughout schools.
The next stop on the Aircrafted Kids schoolbags trail is Egypt, with more destinations in the MENA region to follow.
As part of an environmental strategy that includes responsible consumption, Emirates committed to repurposing more than 50,000 kilograms of materials, from 205 aircraft that are undergoing a cabin interior refit and refresh.
The team at Emirates Engineering brainstormed a myriad of ways to reuse and upcycle old materials and settled on a range of sturdy backpacks.
The high-quality seat fabric of Emirates Economy Class seats is 95 percent wool and 5 percent nylon.
It is a flat weave structure sourced from Germany and Ireland, ideal for upcycling due to its durability and non-flammable nature.
In a dedicated workshop at Emirates, a team of 14 Engineering Maintenance Assistants creatively designed and tailored a whole range of backpacks for children of different ages.
The Emirates Corporate Communications, Marketing and Brand team then identified charitable entities, schools, and foundations where the bags could be distributed for the most impact, communicating with the non-government organizations (NGOs) on their preferences.
The teams spent weeks researching styles, ensuring the bags were safe and comfortable for children to use.
Across all the bag designs, the fabrics were professionally laundered, then deep-cleaned by hand, leather-conditioned for the accents, and thoroughly disinfected before being sewn into unique pieces.
The bags were relined with brand new lining, functional zippers, and adjustable straps, then packed into specially branded “Aircrafted Kids” boxes and shipped to their final destinations.
With transport and logistics fully supported by Emirates’ SkyCargo teams and dnata Logistics across the continents, Aircrafted Kids by Emirates connected the community of Emirates employees to achieve a meaningful goal.
