Dubai Plans Massive New Airport
Dubai Airports is planning to replace Dubai International Airport with an even larger facility, according to a report by AFP.
Quoting Dubai Airports chief executive Paul Griffiths, the AFP report said DXB will be replaced by a new airport in the 2030s and the next project would be extended into the middle of the century.
The airport executive said that when Dubai International Airport reaches capacity, Al Maktoum International would need to be developed on an even larger scale.
Dubai plans new airport
The news emerged as Dubai Airports said it expects to welcome 86m passengers in 2023 and surpass pre-pandemic levels.
The airport boss said DXB has a capacity of around 120m, and when that is reached a new airport will be needed.
“Once we’ve reached about 120m, which is what we think our total capacity at DXB is at the absolute maximum with everything optimised, we are going to need a new airport,” Paul Griffiths told AFP.
“That is going to have to happen at some stage during the 2030s. We’re going to be working on those designs over the next few months”.
Expanding on plans for a new airport in the city, he said: “It stands to reason that Al Maktoum International has to be even bigger and even better.
“This will be a project that extends way into the 2050s, because we take the long-term view here.”
No dates, deadlines or budget for the future airport was released, but Griffiths said it will have an industry-changing futuristic design.
“We are not planning an airport that has terminals. We’re going to completely change the business model for airports, make them actually far more intimate and get rid of all the legacy processes that we’ve had to subject our customers to, for far too long”.
