Emirates is offering customers in the UK and US access to Apple Pay, a new service that transforms mobile payments with an easy, secure and private way to purchase flight tickets.

The new payment option puts Emirates ahead of the game as the first global airline to allow its customers to access Apple Pay when booking online, making mobile flight ticket purchase even more fuss free.

“The customer experience is at the heart of what we do and we always aim to raise the bar through innovation.

“We’re proud to be the first global airline to introduce Apple Pay for ticket purchases and we hope this will contribute towards a more seamless customer experience which begins even before they board our flights,” commented Thierry Antinori, chief commercial officer, Emirates.

Security and privacy is at the core of Apple Pay.

When credit or debit cards are added to Apple Pay, the actual card numbers are not stored on the device, nor on Apple servers. Instead, a unique Device Account Number is assigned, encrypted and securely stored in the Secure Element on the device.

Each transaction is authorised with a one-time unique dynamic security code.

Emirates will offer Apple Pay within its app, available on the App Store.

Online booking is as simple as the touch of a finger with Touch ID, removing the need to manually fill out lengthy account forms when confirming flight tickets.

Apple Pay is compatible with iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3.

Purchasing tickets via Apple Pay will still allow customers to receive all of the rewards and benefits offered by credit and debit cards.

Emirates has plans to extend this service to other markets as soon as it becomes available.