Airport expansion is a key step in promoting Abu Dhabi’s future visitor growth according to Khalifa Al Mazrouei, Chairman, SCADIA (Supervision Committee for the expansion of Abu Dhabi International Airport).
In his address to delegates Abu Dhabi Department of Civil Aviation hosted Airport Service Quality 2006 conference, which opened today in the UAE capital; Al Mazrouei outlined Abu Dhabi International Airport’s expansion strategy which extends over 340 hectares and is expected to attract an investment of more than Dhs 30 billion.
“Abu Dhabi has witnessed phenomenal growth in the last few years in the economic, industrial and tourism sectors. This growth is expected to continue in the future, making Abu Dhabi an ideal destination for tourists and investors alike. Accordingly, strategic place were placed to deal with the anticipated growth needs”, Al Mazrouei said.
In the face of mounting passenger traffic the airport’s sole terminal had to be operated well in excess of its 3.5 million passenger capacity, with actual operating capacity hitting the 5.8 million mark in 2005.
Al Mazrouei said a number of immediate remedies had to be applied to deal with the spiraling growth in both passengers and air traffic, triggered by the creation of Etihad Airways and its rapid development into a global player.
“With the Gulf Traveler Terminal and Terminal 2 in operation since September 2005, the airport passenger capacity load has eased considerably. The AED 300 million interim terminals, including the 9 aircraft hard stands, are designed to smooth passenger flow and relieve pressure caused by high density flights at the existing airport, until the mega Midfield Terminal Complex is complete in 2010,” he said.
SCADIA is currently working on a new state-of-the-art, 4 million passenger capacity concourse for the exclusive use of Etihad Airways, the UAE national carrier. The concourse, boasting eight gates capable of handling wide-bodied aircraft, will accommodate the airline’s growth until 2010, when the new Midfield Terminal comes on stream.
A second, 4,100-meter runway will be completed by the fourth quarter of 2007, in time to receive the first batch of the giant Airbus A380s that will join Etihad Airway’s fleet starting from early 2008.
The new Midfield Terminal Complex is designed to handle 20 million passengers annually and is expandable to an ultimate capacity of 50 million.
The master plan envisions a marked growth of cargo handling capacity to as much as 2 million tons, more than 8 times the current capacity of the existing facility. Accordingly, facilities will be expanded incrementally relative to cargo demand in the coming years.
Unlike few other projects of comparable magnitude, the airport expansion program promises to be a blessing, rather than a curse, to the local environment. Several hundred hectares of trees and other plants will be relocated to form a natural buffer zone that will also help mitigate noise from the airport. In addition, a number of important archaeological sites will be excavated for display in the new terminal.
SCADIA was launched by Abu Dhabi’s Executive Council in May 2004 to manage and supervise the expansion of the Abu Dhabi International Airport project.
