Paul Griffiths, who oversees the world’s busiest airport,
told The Associated Press the annual forecast at Dubai International, or DXB,
is more than 64 million. The airport saw 18.5 million passengers in the third
quarter of this year, up from 17.8 million during the first quarter of 2020 —
prior to and at the dawn of the pandemic.
Most of the growth, Griffith said, comes from the
traditional markets of India, the U.K., Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. He added
that the end of COVID-19 testing requirements and people’s eagerness to travel
have contributed to the increase.
“Recovery is very much on the agenda and has been a
phenomenon here ever since the end of the pandemic,” Griffiths said.
The new numbers are welcome news for the tourism-driven
economy of Dubai, which accounts for about 12% of the tiny nation’s GDP. A year
ago in the third quarter, 6.7 million came through the airport.
Still the figure is nowhere near the pre-pandemic milestone
of 86.4 million in annual traffic logged by the airport in 2019.
The 46 million passengers who traveled through DXB in the
first nine months of this year represent 72% of the airport’s pre-pandemic
levels. Griffiths says they expect to reach pre-pandemic levels annually by
2023.
The largest share of traffic to Dubai came from India, with
6.8 million travelers, followed by Saudi Arabia, with 3.4 million travelers
this year. A key growth market for travel to and from Dubai is Pakistan and the
United States.
The United Arab Emirates is home to more than 100,000
British citizens. Dubai’s main airport logged 3.2 million passengers from the
U.K. up to September this year, making it the third largest share of traffic
numbers.
Around 60% of Dubai’s airport traveler figures this year
represent arrivals, with the rest transiting through.
The first World Cup in the Middle East, currently taking
place in Qatar, says Griffiths, is expected to add 494,000 passengers to Al
Maktoum International Airport, or DWC, during the fourth quarter of the year.
Currently, 120 daily flights are operational from DWC for FIFA fans to shuttle
between matches in Doha and Dubai.
Qatar Airways has 60 daily flights to shuttle soccer fans to
the tournament, while the other 60 are operated by low-cost carrier FlyDubai,
he said.
Ambitious plans to turn the airfield in Dubai’s southern
desert into a mega-aviation hub, first unveiled by Dubai before the 2008 global
financial crisis, have sputtered in recent years. Long-haul carrier Emirates,
based in Dubai, parked many of its double-decker Airbus A380s there during the
pandemic as commercial flights halted.
Now, Griffiths says the air travel market continues to
rebound around the world, with more people traveling as mobility returns to the
world.
This year, 275,000 flights went through DXB, up 159% from
2021.
The widespread lifting of pandemic restrictions in Dubai
triggered a rapid increase in air travel demand, filling Dubai’s hub. Griffiths
says that has also contributed positively to the city’s economy. -AP