DUBAI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT (DXB) remains the city’s main aviation hub, but the other airport serving the region, Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC), is expected to far eclipse Dubai International in the coming years. Still under construction and gaining capacity, Al Maktoum first opened for commercial flights in 2013. When it reaches ultimate completion, the airport will be the largest global gateway, serving more than 160 million passengers annually.

Locally known as Dubai World Central, Al Maktoum’s most recent expansion, completed in 2018, raised its annual capacity from 5 million to 26.5 million. The number of passengers and airlines coming through the new airport might take a while to catch up to the hub’s capacity, though.

Through the first nine months of 2019, 1.3 million passengers passed through DWC; most passengers came through as a result of closed runways at Dubai International. As the numbers stand, Dubai International Airport remains the major hub for travelers flying into and out of Dubai, serving 64,495,241 passengers in the first nine months of 2019.

PHOTO: ©DUBAIAIRPORTS

Dubai International Airport officials do not intend to let the airport rest on its laurels. In 2018 DXB came very near its 90 million-passenger total capacity with 89,143,351 passengers. Another project currently underway will increase its capacity to more than 118 million passengers by the end of 2023. Together, DWC and DXB are expected to surpass 120 million annual passengers by 2025.

DXB has a unique position of influence, and the airport uses it to reduce its carbon footprint and produce less waste overall. Last June Dubai Airports, the governing organization of both DXB and DWC, announced the airports would impose a self-enforced ban on all single-use plastics. Straws, coffee lids, water bottles, utensils and more need to be purged, with airport officials working with vendors to meet the goal.

The first phase of the change went into effect in the beginning of January, removing plastic cutlery, straws, food packaging and polythene bags from the airport. Over the next year more products will be replaced. Hand in hand with the reduction of single-use plastic, the airports are increasing recycling efforts.

The future for DWC is uncertain with DXB continuing to grow and expand in the face of diminished numbers. Dubai itself, however, continues to attract millions of visitors, whether they visit the city itself or just pass through.