How Al Maktoum International Airport will become the biggest airport in the world
Dubai has ambitious plans for Al Maktoum International Airport, which will eventually see it become the world's largest capacity airport.
The Dhs128 billion project will be five times the size of the existing Dubai International Airport when it is eventually completed.
The latest updates have revealed the three phases of construction that will eventually see it become the main airport in the emirate.
The existing airport in Dubai South, also known as Dubai World Central, serves a small fraction of the planned 260 million passengers it will eventually have capacity for.
But what is the history of the project? When can we expect it to be completed? And how will it change the city?
What is the history of Al Maktoum International Airport?
When it first opened in the year 2010, Al Maktoum International Airport had rather more humble beginnings compared to the grand plans mapped out for its future.
With phase one, it had only one runway and its sole purpose was for cargo flights, opening to passengers in 2013.
Construction of the airport began in 2005 with an ambition to eventually build a fully integrated 'aerotropolis' in Jebel Ali, Dubai South.
Al Maktoum Airport
This will be a new city within the emirate based entirely around the airport. The airport will be at the centre of the planned 140 square kilometre project. There will be six clustered zones that include the Dubai Logistics City, Commercial City, Residential City, Aviation City and the Golf City.
The airport has had several different working titles, including Jebel Ali International Airport, Jebel Ali Airport City and Dubai World Central International Airport.
The announcement in 2024 was not the first time that the city had declared that Al Maktoum would eventually become the world's busiest airport with reports from 2013 projecting that it would do so within a decade.
Phase 1 of the Al Maktoum International Airport construction
Sustainability is at the heart of the design of Al Maktoum International Airport (Credit: Coop Himmelb(l)au)
The first phase, due to be completed by 2032, will start with the construction of the West Terminal Building, which will be connected to the city with a new express metro line, and Concourse 1.
An elaborate underground train system, referred to as an Automated People Mover (APM) by airport planners, will be required at the airport due to the sheer scale of the site.
Concourse 1 will be connected with 100 contact gates, and four underground stations will be built to allow passengers to move around the airport quickly.
This concourse will be the first of four identical 2.7 km-long concourses at Al Maktoum International Airport. It will have a built-up area of 2.3 million square metres and feature cutting-edge passenger facilities.
The concourse design is inspired by the UAE desert, with three sand-dune-like nodes running along a central spine line.
The airfield will see the construction of runways 2 and 3, along with an underground baggage handling system and a ground service equipment road network.
Energy centres, fire safety and other support facilities for duty-free catering, maintenance and storage will be constructed on the north side of the airport to provide the best operational and commercial support services.
Once phase one is completed, Al Maktoum International Airport will have capacity for 130 million annual passengers, which is more than the 92.3 million travellers who flew through DXB in 2024.
Phase 2 of Al Maktoum International Airport construction
The interior of the planned new look for Al Maktoum International Airport (Credit: Dubai Media Office)
In the following decade, the second phase of Al Maktoum International Airport will build a second concourse, parallel and identical to concourse 1, which will enable 150 million annual passengers to flow across 200 contact gates.
The second phase will also add a further three underground train stations to serve the second concourse as well as the expansion of the ground service equipment roads network and the automated baggage handling system.
Support facilities will also be further expanded to match the new airport capacity.
Final phase of Al Maktoum International Airport construction
Everything you need to know about Al Maktoum International Airport (Credit: Dubai Media Office)
Once the project is completed, Al Maktoum International Airport will be five times the size of the current Dubai International Airport, which is already the world's busiest for international passengers.
It will be able to accommodate up to 260 million passengers once completed.
The final development will start with the construction of the East Terminal, Concourse 3 and Concourse 4. This phase will enable ground transportation access from the east side of the city.
The final phase will include a connection to the Etihad Rail and a brand new Dubai Metro line. The internal underground railway system at AMI will be expanded to become a 14-station system connecting all airside buildings in a giant loop.
Runway four and five will complete the airfield and enable four aircraft to make parallel approaches.
Today, we approved the designs for the new passenger terminals at Al Maktoum International Airport, and commencing construction of the building at a cost of AED 128 billion as part of Dubai Aviation Corporation's strategy.
Al Maktoum International Airport will enjoy the… pic.twitter.com/oG973DGRYX
— HH Sheikh Mohammed (@HHShkMohd) April 28, 2024
There will be more than 400 aircraft gates, five parallel runways with the highest operational specifications, and a total of five passenger terminal buildings. The airport will span 70 square kilometres once fully complete.
It will also see all operations currently at Dubai International Airport eventually move over to Al Maktoum International Airport in the coming years.
When can we expect the Al Maktoum International Airport project to be completed?
Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, president of the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, CEO and founder of the Emirates Group and chairman of Dubai World, says that the first phase of the project will be ready within 10 years and will accommodate 150 million passengers annually.
Speaking at the Dubai Airshow last year, the CEO of Dubai Airports Paul Griffiths revealed that the full project wouldn't be completed until 'way into the 2050s'.
He also said that once DXB reaches about 120 million passengers per year there will be a need for a new airport since Dubai International Airport is already fully optimised.
On Tuesday March 4, an update from Falcon, one of the airport's top aviation services providers, outlined plans for a Dhs360 million upgrade its maintenance, repair and overhaul facility.
The plans by the company included the addition of a new private jet terminal by the year 2030 at what they said would be the world's busiest travel hub by then.
How will Al Maktoum International Airport change Dubai?
A brand new city within the city will be built in Dubai South as part of the plans. The aerotropolis has been under development and operation since 2007 in Dubai.
It will host the world's leading companies in the logistics and air transport sectors, which will bring lots of new jobs to Dubai.
A render of plans for Al Maktoum International Airport (Credit: Dubai Media Office)
This means that housing will be required for at least a million people according to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.
The new airport will also require an integrated landside transport hub for roads, the Dubai Metro, and city air transport.
What will happen to DXB once Al Maktoum International Airport is completed?
Every single service at the world's busiest international airport will eventually move to Al Maktoum, according to the Dubai Airports CEO.
Speaking at Arabian Travel Market 2025, CEO Paul Griffiths was asked about plans for DXB once all operations move to Al Maktoum International Airport, also known as DWC.
Although the move is still some time in the future, Griffiths stated that there would be 'little sense' in having two airports the size of Dubai International Airport and Al Maktoum International Airport, which will eventually be five times the size of DXB, operating at the same time when they're both so close to each other.
In addition, he also discussed that the assets at Dubai International Airport would require renovation by the time the move to Al Maktoum is made, so keeping DXB open would be tricky unless they invested huge sums of money.
Where does Al Maktoum International Airport currently fly to?
Al Maktoum International Airport, or Dubai World Central as it is currently known, flies mainly to Europe and several other popular destinations for travellers from the UAE.
These include:
Denmark : Copenhagen
: Copenhagen Czechia: Prague
Prague England: Newcastle
Newcastle Germany: Berlin, Cologne, Munich, Stuttgart
Berlin, Cologne, Munich, Stuttgart Italy: Milan
Milan Luxembourg: Luxembourg
Luxembourg Maldives: Male
Male Netherlands: Amsterdam
Amsterdam Norway : Oslo
: Oslo Poland: Katowice
Katowice Romania: Bucharest
Bucharest Saudi Arabia: Jeddah, Riyadh
Jeddah, Riyadh Sweden: Stockholm
Stockholm Switzerland: Zurich
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