AIRPORTS in the UAE are investing over Dh46 billion ($12.5 billion) in airport expansion projects which will increase their capacity from 33 million passengers annually at present to 120 million passengers by 2008, Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, president of Dubai Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) and Chairman and CEO of Emirates Group, said.
Sheikh Ahmed was speaking at the sidelines of Dubai 2006, the 12th World Route Development Forum. He said UAE airlines have placed Dh200 billion worth of orders for new aircraft, of which Emirates’ order alone accounts for Dh110 billion.
He said counting the region’s major airports, Dubai’s share of the total passenger throughput in the region accounts for almost 65 per cent.
The Routes Forum and the ICAO Global Symposium on Air Transport Liberalisation are two of global civil aviation’s most important annual events. Experts attending proclaimed the Middle East as one of the important regions for civil aviation.
IATA statistics cited at the symposium as well as the Forum, confirmed this analyses. According to the latest information passenger throughput in the Middle East has gone up by 14.1 per cent this year as compared to a maximum of 6.4 in other regions.