Achi news desk-
Plans have been on the books for years to move the airport’s operations, known as DXB, to Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai World Central, but they were also delayed by the after-effects of the sheikhdom’s 2009 economic crisis.
Sheikh Mohammed said in an online statement: “We are building a new project for future generations, ensuring continuous and stable development for our children and their children in turn.
“Dubai will be the world’s airport, its port, its urban hub and its new global center.”
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The publication featured computer generated images of a curved, white terminal reminiscent of the traditional Bedouin tents of the Arabian Peninsula.
The airport will have five parallel runways and 400 aircraft gates, the announcement said. Al Maktoum currently has only two runways, like Dubai International Airport.
The financial health of carrier Emirates has served as a barometer for the airline industry worldwide and the wider economic health of Dubai.
Dubai and the airline rebounded quickly from the pandemic by pushing forward with tourism even as some countries emerged from their pandemic more slowly.
The number of passengers flying through DXB last year exceeded its total for 2019 with 86.9 million passengers. Its annual traffic in 2019 was 86.3 million passengers.
The airport had 89.1 million passengers in 2018 – its busiest year ever before the pandemic – while 66 million passengers passed through in 2022.
Earlier in February, Dubai announced its best ever tourism numbers, saying it welcomed 17.15 million international overnight visitors in 2023.
Average hotel occupancy was around 77%. Its boom and bust real estate market continues to be on a hot streak, with prices near record highs.
But as those passenger numbers increased, it again put new pressure on DXB’s capacity, which remains constrained on all sides by residential areas and main roads.
Al Maktoum International Airport, some 28 miles from DXB, opened in 2010 with one terminal.
It served as a parking area for Emirates double-decker Airbus A380s and other aircraft during the pandemic and has slowly come back to life with cargo and private flights in the interim since.
It also hosts the biennial Dubai Airshow and has a vast, empty desert in which to expand.
The announcement by Sheikh Mohammed marked Dubai’s plans to expand further south. Already, its nearby Expo 2020 site has been offering homes to buyers.
“As we build an entire city around the airport in South Dubai, the demand for housing for a million people will follow,” said the Dubai manager. “It will be home to the world’s leading companies in the logistics and air transport sectors.”
The announcement comes as Dubai continues to recover from the heaviest rain on record in the UAE, which disrupted flights and commerce days earlier this month.
