Emirates has launched its daily, non-stop service between Dubai and Boston.

Boston becomes the airline’s eighth US destination and the 142nd on its global network which links key tourism and trading destinations across six continents.

The inaugural flight EK237 departed from Terminal 3, Dubai International at 09:45 hours, carrying a delegation of senior airline executives.

Emirates will operate daily flights between the two cities with a Boeing 777-200LR aircraft in a three-class configuration, offering eight seats in First Class, 42 in Business Class and 216 in Economy Class.

“We are extremely upbeat about our new Boston service. From the moment we first announced plans to connect Massachusetts to our global network, we have received a strong and positive response from travellers and our business customers - not only in the US, but also in our home market of the UAE, and other major cities Asia, Africa and the Middle East,” said Tim Clark, president, Emirates Airline.

“Emirates’ inaugural flight today carries passengers from the UAE and 39 other destinations, illustrating the reach of our global network, and the potential tourism and trade opportunities of our daily service.

“We thank our friends in Boston and Massachusetts for the warm welcome and look forward to serving this exciting city and state.”

In addition to passengers, Emirates SkyCargo will operate bellyhold cargo space to help transport goods to and from Boston - such electronics, medical equipment, pharmaceuticals, machine parts, leather products, consumer commodities, as well as New England’s finest lobster.

Emirates SkyCargo can carry up to 15 tonnes per day.

More than 50 Boston-based companies operate in the UAE, and in excess of 150 companies have operations throughout Central Asia.

Considered a centre for education and research, the region around Boston has more 270 colleges and universities, and each year as many as 44,000 foreign students call New England home during the school term.