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Gulf Air, Bahrain’s national carrier, will become the first full service network carrier to operate into Dubai’s new airport.
With little fanfare it became the first passenger airline to touch down on the runway this week, although the spotlight was supposed to be directed on a low-cost carrier flying from Eastern Europe into the Gulf.
The mayhem took place a little later when Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, arrived at the terminal of Al Maktoum International at Dubai World Central (DWC) to officially open it.
Schoolchildren lined up at the entrance and after a brief interlude the official party set off at a blistering pace … an enormous entourage following closely behind left members of the press chasing a tidal wave of white thobes.
Gulf Air’s acting chief executive officer, Maher Salman Al Musallam, managed to catch up with Shaikh Mohammed on the tarmac as the first passenger plane received its traditional soaking by airport fire crews, shook hands and personally expressed the airline’s pride in being part of such a significant event in regional aviation history.
A couple of hours earlier it was so much calmer when he was welcomed through customs and each of the small Gulf Air party was warmly greeted with a rose by smiling officers.
GulfWeekly can confirm Bahrain’s airline was the first to touch down on Sunday with passengers onboard, although air traffic control initially thought they were welcoming Jazeera Airways until they were politely corrected by a less than amused Gulf Air senior captain Fahad Ramadhan and senior first officer Ahmed Aseeri.
There was bound to be confusion in the air as the airport was unveiling links with three airlines, notably Gulf Air, Jazeera Airways starting flights shortly to Kuwait, and, after the large delegation of local dignitaries and aviation officials toured the facility following the unveiling of a commemorative display, they went on to welcome the first commercial operation, Wizz Air flight W6 2497 arriving from Budapest, Hungary.
And Sree K. Bhat, senior editor of GulfWeekly’s parental website Trade Arabia and Layalina magazine photographer Mohamed Al Tabal also believe they made local aviation history by becoming the first passengers at the airport to pay 185 dirhams for entry visas as Indian and Jordanian visitors respectively.
The Gulf Air party quickly became the centre of attention of the UAE’s early bird TV and radio stations as honoured ‘first arrivals’ and Lebanese cabin service manager Marina Srour and her cabin crew colleague Anna Jacobs, from Poland, were pounced upon by Gina Peach, a reporter for Dubai Eye Radio, for an interview.
Gulf Air’s claim to fame is that it will be the first ‘full-service network carrier’ to fly in when it commences a daily service linking Bahrain to Al Maktoum International from December 8, in addition to its flights to Dubai International.
Mr Al Musallam told a packed press conference later that the airport’s close proximity to the holiday, residential and business developments of new Dubai, such as Arabian Ranches, Dubai Marina, Dubai Media City and Palm Jumeirah, make it ‘an attractive, alternative, time-saving travel proposition’.
Gulf Air will be operating its new A320 ER aircraft on all of it its flights between Bahrain International Airport and Al Maktoum International. The aircraft are equipped with the latest in-flight entertainment technology and fares will start from BD82.
Al Maktoum International offers full retail as well as food and beverage amenities, although at this stage of the operation they are devoid of the normal hustle and bustle of airport life and it retains a sort of new car smell about the place.
It is serviced by one A380 capable main runway, 64 remote aircraft stands and has capacity for up to seven million passengers per year.
It has been named after the late Shaikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the former ruler of Dubai. It will be the main part of DWC, a planned residential, commercial and logistics complex scheme.
DWC aims to be the world’s first truly integrated logistics platform with most transport modes, logistics and value-added services, including manufacturing and assembly, in a single free economic zone.
Following the new passenger terminal’s official inauguration you can guarantee in true Dubai-style Al Maktoum International at DWC will likely live up to its aim of one day becoming the globe’s biggest airport.
“Al Maktoum International at Dubai World Central will play a vital role in the future development of Dubai as a centre for trade, commerce, transport and logistics and tourism. I am impressed by the efficiency and convenience of this new terminal,” said Shaikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, president of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and chairman of Dubai Airports.
“The opening of this facility signals the historic beginning of a long-term plan to build the largest airport in the world to accommodate the tremendous passenger growth and contribute to the continued economic and social development of Dubai.”
Built for the future, the airport at Jebel Ali, once completed, will have the capacity to handle 12 million tonnes of annual cargo capacity and 160 million passengers. The infrastructure required to accommodate four additional runways capable of handling four superjumbo aircraft landings simultaneously, 24-hours-a-day, is already in place.
Phase 2 of the airport, which includes the construction of an additional two automated and one non-automated cargo terminals, is currently under way. This is expected to increase the total cargo capacity at Al Maktoum International Airport to 1.4 million tonnes per annum. Concurrently, the groundwork for an exhibition area designated as the new permanent home of the Dubai Airshow is also in progress.
The new airport will cover an area of 55,000 acres (220 km2).
Fellow Gulf States are watching developments in Dubai and have under their wings their own airport expansion plans.
Major airport developments are also taking place in Doha and Abu Dhabi and Bahrain International Airport is to be expanded too to handle 13.5 million passengers a year. There are also plans to build a new second airport on either the undeveloped island of Fasht Aljarem, or north of Diyar Al Muharraq.
Paul Griffiths, a British businessman and CEO of Dubai Airports, believes there is room for all Gulf countries to make the region a global hub for the aviation industry as it steps ahead of traditional players.
Europe, in particular, has financial woes hitting major investment plans, and strong environmental lobbying can delay any significant airport expansion proposals on existing sites for years.
