UAE: New Dubai airport expected to become world's largest air port

Record ID: 791968

  • Title: UAE: New Dubai airport expected to become world's largest air port
  • Date: 6th November 2007
  • Summary: (MER1) DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (NOVEMBER 5, 2007) (REUTERS) SIGNBOARD SHOWING DRAWING OF AL MAKTOUM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (JXB) AND READING 'JEBEL ALI AIRPORT CITY' SIGNBOARD/ CONSTRUCTION SITE AND CRANES
  • Embargoed: 21st November 2007 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: Transport
  • Reuters ID: LVA7GS4AV8VR47IGIH7V8T23GHNG
  • Story Text: The Dubai World Central International Airport under construction south of Dubai in the UAE is expected to become the world's largest passenger and cargo airport.
    Construction of the first 4.5 kilometre runway has been completed on time at the the 8.1-billion U.S. dollar (USD) Al Maktoum International Airport (JXB) in the emirate of Dubai, say officials. The airport is being touted as the world's largest passenger and cargo hub once it is completed.
    Built in 600 days, the runway will undergo tests and trials in the coming months to ensure landing capability for any aircraft with zero metres visibility.
    ''The runway is a flexible runway. It is 4.5 kilometres long, 60 meters wide. it is planned to take any type of aircraft for a longer period of six, seven years. But this is part of the 'logistics city'. Because the runway is completed on time on September 30, we have apron and associated taxi-ways, the parallel taxi-ways are completed, then the rapid-exit taxi-ways are under construction and they will be completed on 17 February 2008,'' said Chief Consulting Engineer on the project Mukhtar Sadiqi.
    Constructed by the Dubai-based firm Al Naboodah Contracting, the runway is the first of the tenders to be executed within the Dubai World Central project plans, which also includes within its portfolio a 140 square kilometre urban aviation community comprising of a logistics city, residential and commercial complexes as well as leisure facilities centred around the airport.
    ''This airport is considered one of the world's largest. When completed, it will have six runways -- six concourses -- and two terminals, and will be able to accommodate between 120 and 150 million passengers annually'', said Dubai World Central Marketing and Corporate Communications Director Abdulla al-Falasi.
    The airport plans to unveil designs for its airport terminals by mid-2008 at the upcoming Dubai Aviation Show where further announcements will be made regarding the airport's heliport and executive jet facilities.

    "If you look at the size of the (DXB) Dubai airport and the amount of traffic it handles, it will give you an idea of this (JXB) airport's importance," al-Falasi said.
    The airport's control tower, which will be the Middle East's tallest free-standing Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower at 92 metres located at JXB will also be completed by February 2008, say airport officials.
    The Dubai World Central project involves more than 18-on-site construction projects with over 9,000 workers and staff involved in its completion.
    The airport is expected to have the capacity to handle 120 million passengers and 12 million tons of cargo annually, dwarfing the current passenger load for Dubai International Airport (DXB). Cargo planes will start using the the new airport by the end of 2008, and passenger planes will start using it by mid-2009. The entire complex is expected to be fully operational by 2015.
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