Dubai has given the green light to a $32 billion expansion of the city’s second airport that could eventually turn it into the world’s largest, capable of accommodating up to 200 million passengers per year.
The first phase expansion of Al Maktoum International will give it the ability to handle 120 million passengers a year.
Once all phases are completed, it will have five parallel runways spaced apart in order for all to be used simultaneously and have sufficient gates for hundreds of planes.
Paul Griffiths, CEO of state-owned airport operator Dubai Airports, said the first phase should be complete in six to eight years.
"It’s a very aggressive time scale but I think that we have a track record here of doing remarkable things in a remarkably challenging time frame," Griffiths said.
"The aviation sector has demonstrated that there is a very compelling economic case to suggest creation of further capacity is a very sensible thing to do and I’m sure that the government will come up with the appropriate funding to make the project a reality."
However Griffiths said it is unlikely to be ready for the start of the World Expo which Dubai will host in 2020.
