Major expansion planned for Dubai’s Al Maktoum airport

Additional immigration and check-in counters hoped to ease traffic congestion

A massive new expansion plan has been announced for Dubai’s new Al Maktoum International Airport which will enable the facility to handle up to 26.5 million passengers per year by 2025.

Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects has appointed Al Jaber LEGT Engineering and Contracting to expand the Passenger Terminal Building at the airport.

The first phase of the extension will increase the built up area of the terminal from the existing 66,107 square metres to 145,926 sqm. This is set to be completed by June 2017.

The arrival building – which houses the public hall for arrivals, the baggage claim area and the arrival baggage handling system – will feature a new immigration hall for 55 control counters, visa and passenger utilities.

The departure building will see the expansion of the public hall, commercial areas and offices and will now house 64 check-in counters.

An additional 10 counters will be specifically dedicated to business check-in.

Expansions will also include 12 new boarding lounges and the extension of the emigration transfer and security area.

A new baggage screening area for arrivals will be added while the current baggage reclaim area will see three new carrousels.

Al Maktoum International Airport will ultimately have the capacity to handle over 220 million passengers per year, a statement said.

Dubai Civil Aviation Authority president Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum said the move was aimed at helping position Dubai as the "aviation capital of the world."

“Today’s announcement marks a historic milestone in the journey of Al Maktoum International which is set to become the world’s largest airport.

“We are poised to significantly boost Dubai’s economy by creating a world-class facility capable of handling the growing number of passengers visiting and transiting our city.

“We are building a range of amenities and facilities that will increase capacity and significantly enrich the airport experience, making it an attractive proposition for airlines as well as passengers.”