COPENHAGEN - Airline company Emirates launched its first passenger service to Scandinavia on Monday by establishing direct flights between Copenhagen, capital of Denmark, and its home hub in Dubai.

According to Emirates, the Danish capital will be serviced by a daily, non-stop connection with an Airbus A330-200 type aircraft, which can seat 237 persons.

The new route makes Copenhagen the airline's 27th destination in Europe and 114th globally.

The direct connection removes the need for Emirates' Scandinavian customers to travel via hubs in Germany to connect with Emirates flights, as was previously the case, the company said in a press statement.

It also allows Emirates to expand its cargo freight capacity in and out of the region, by adding to its existing freighter service to Gothenburg in southern Sweden, it explained.

The company expects the additional capacity will improve two-way market access for businesses in Denmark and southern Sweden, and for those in Emirates' traditional hubs in the Middle East, Australia, the Far East and in Dubai itself, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

This view is reflected by Danish business and tourism authorities who also believe the route will help bring in more tourists from Asia and Australia into Denmark, the statement added.

Emirates had officially announced the opening of the Dubai-Copenhagen service as far back as 2006, but postponed its plans following the international outcry created by publication of caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad by a Danish newspaper.

Instead, Qatar airways became the first UAE-based airline to open a route to Copenhagen in March 2010, and was followed by Gulf Air, which started a similar service in July 2011.

According to Takeoff.dk, Copenhagen airport currently serves some 25 overseas routes, and had a turnover of 21.5 million passengers last year.