Dubai's DWC mega $35 billion airport moving forward with contract awards: Emirates Chairman
At a media interaction during the Arabian Travel Market (ATM), Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Airline and Group, provided updates on the planned transition of Emirates and other Dubai carriers to the new passenger terminal at Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC). He also discussed infrastructure development, the airline's fleet plans, market dynamics, and potential future orders.
Responding to a question about contracts awarded towards the building of the airport, Sheikh Ahmed said, "Yes, we did. I don't want to go into which contracts at this time, you know. I think it's more for our airport engineering to do that. Maybe they should really give you a brief at some time in the very near future what exactly they are doing. But work has started."
Describing the DWC project as immensely complex due to its scale, Sheikh Ahmed said the extensive stakeholder engagement underway involving Emirates, flydubai, dnata, regulators, and the more than 100 other airlines operating in Dubai. He stressed the crucial role of the Operational Readiness and Airport Transfer (ORAT) programme and that staff training alone for the opening day might require around 12 months.
The goal, he said, is to make the transition "perfect as the day of the opening," confirming that contracts have been awarded. Work has started since the Dubai government gave the go-ahead to build the $35 billion passenger terminal almost over a year ago, confirmed Sheikh Ahmed.
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