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29 March 2024

Emirates has no plans to move base to new airport

Published
By Riyad Mickdady

(SUPPLIED)   

 

Emirates airline will not shift any of its flights to the new airport in Jebel Ali in the near future as it is not feasible to work from two bases inside the same city, said Chairman of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and President of Emirates Group and airline Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum.


Sheikh Ahmed, a member of the official delegation accompanying His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, during his current visit to China, said: “Emirates airline will shift its operations at Dubai International Airport to the new Terminal Three in three months’ time, which will allow it to handle the fast growth in the number of its passengers.


“Shifting to the new terminal once it is completed, without an experimental period, is a big challenge that we are working to deal with. Special seriousness [is being given] in light of the complications involved in shifting all operations at the same time.”


Setting aside one full terminal for Emirates’ operations was driven by the need for a bigger operations base, he said. The carrier flew some 20 million of the 34 million passengers who used Dubai International Airport in 2007.


“Despite the big growth expected in the number of passengers via Dubai International Airport over the coming years, the fast growth of Emirates’ operations will allow it to have some 75 per cent of the total number of passengers via the airport in the coming years.”


Sheikh Ahmed, who also chairs the budget airline recently announced by Dubai, said the new carrier would operate from the Al Maktoum International Airport in Jebel Ali, where shipping operations will start before the end of this year.

The yet-to-be-named airline will be operational within one year, he said, adding that it will build its operations base, form its crews and build its fleet over the coming months.