Dubai to replace DXB airport with bigger one as passenger count improves

Dubai is planning to replace the world's busiest airport, Dubai International (DBX), with a bigger airport as passenger traffic recovers to surpass pre-pandemic levels

Dubai is planning to replace the world's busiest airport, Dubai International (IATA code: DXB), with an even bigger one as passenger traffic recovers to surpass pre-pandemic levels.

Paul Griffiths, chief executive officer (CEO) of Dubai Airports, said, "Designs are being drawn up for the Al Maktoum International Airport, which will be built on the city's outskirts and should replace the Dubai International in the 2030s."

At the Dubai Airshow in the UAE, Griffiths said that once the country reaches 120 million passengers a year, which is the total capacity at the DXB (Dubai International), a new airport will be needed. "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," he said.

He said that there will be an estimated 86.9 million passenger count at the Dubai International this year, surpassing 2019 traffic and underlining the recovery from the pandemic. He added that the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in Gaza has not affected the passenger count at the airport.

The Dubai airport closed to commercial flights from March to July 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2020, it received only 25.9 million passengers, down from 86 million in 2019.

Griffiths further said that the new airport will be "designed on a modular basis rather than based around terminals" so that it can easily expand over time if needed.

Calling the airport as "airport of the future", he said that Al Maktoum International has to be even bigger and even better (than Dubai International). "This will be a project that extends way into the 2050s, because we take the long-term view here," he added.