Region soars with mega airport plans

Two massive airport developments in Dubai and Saudi Arabia boasting capacities of a whopping 260 million passengers and 185 million passengers per year respectively are among the mega investments estimated at around 151 billion that the Middle East is making in capacity expansion.

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THE Middle East's aviation sector is gearing up for a monumental leap forward, fuelled by two key trends: the revolutionary potential of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) and the construction of colossal new airports.

Airports across the region which are already undergoing significant expansion to handle surging passenger numbers, with both Saudi Arabia and the UAE having confirmed plans to construct some of the world's largest airports - are being urged to adapt their plans for the imminent arrival of AAM vehicles by the Airports Council International (ACI) Asia-Pacific & Middle East, which addressed a recent aviation conference in Riyadh (see page 27).

According to the recently published ACI Asia-Pacific and Middle East Air Connectivity Ranking 2023, the Middle East is experiencing a steady growth in air connectivity and recommends meeting current and future demand by building new airport infrastructure.

The Asia Pacific region accounts for more than 70 per cent of the investment in airport infrastructure, with the global figure standing at 225 new airport projects. According to a CAPA report, 425 major construction projects are under way at existing airports worldwide, with $450 billion in investments.

There were 1,074 airport investors, of which 258 were airport operators, groups or consortiums. About 68 per cent of all projects were based on terminals, either expansions or new developments. A report has disclosed that the global airport construction market grew to $1.14 trillion in 2023 and would reach $1.8 trillion by 2030.

With the civil aviation industry almost fully recovered after the steepest fall in passenger numbers due to the Covid-19 pandemic, airports across the world are bracing themselves to handle a big boom in air travel until 2030 by going in for expansions and redevelopments.