When the $8.2 Billion (U.S.) project is completed, Jebel Ali International Airport will be the combined size of O’Hare in Chicago and Heathrow in London. The Middle East is rapidly growing as a commercial center and Dubai, in particular, is positioning itself as an air crossroads between Asia, Europe and North America. The new airport is projected to serve passenger and air cargo transportation to 2050. When completed, the Airport will be able to handle annual volumes of 120 million passengers and 12 million tonnes of cargo.
Initial phases of the project are aimed at handling a large portion of air cargo that moves through Dubai. Work has already begun on the 4.5-kilometer cargo runway. It is slated to open in the early part of 2007.
Supporting the new facility will be the mixed-use urban Jebel Ali Airport City that will include aviation, logistics, commercial, residential, educational, technological and entertainment components. At its center will be Dubai Logistics City, which will provide logistics and multi-modal transportation services.
Source: Logistics Today.
