Dubai International Airport in December retained its position as the world's busiest for international passengers, overtaking major hubs such as London Heathrow, as passenger traffic surged during the peak holiday travel period.
The monthly rankings by aviation consultancy OAG were calculated using airlines' international seat capacity and international flight frequency in December 2021, compared with the same month in 2019 before the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Dubai held on to the top spot with 3.54 million seats, about one million more than the next busiest airport, London Heathrow, OAG said in its monthly World's Busiest Airports report.
Amsterdam Schiphol, Paris Charles de Gaulle and Istanbul Airport rounded off the top five busiest international airports, the data showed.
Dubai International's Terminal 3 was expected to serve more than 1.6 million passengers in the second half of December during the month's peak seasonal travel period, operator Dubai Airports said last month.
The emirate's airport operator raised its forecast for annual passenger traffic for 2021 by two million, anticipating that traveller numbers will reach 28.7 million. Dubai Airports is projecting 57 million passengers for 2022.
After the reopening of the final phase of Concourse A at Terminal 3, Dubai International is operating at full capacity after 20 months of reduced operations because of the pandemic. Dubai World Central, the emirate's second airport, will reopen its passenger terminal in May.
Increased passenger traffic has also buoyed airport retail sales. Dubai Duty Free annual sales surged 40 per cent to Dh3.56 billion ($970 million) in 2021.
There were fewer European airports in the top 10 busiest international airports in December, down to six from eight in November. Frankfurt dropped from fifth to the sixth busiest. Dublin dropped out of the top 10, replaced by Miami in 10th place.
Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson retained its dominance in December in the world's top 10 busiest global airports ranking that takes into account domestic and international capacity. Dubai does not have a domestic air travel market.
Dubai recorded a capacity increase of 15 per cent in December from the previous month, adding almost 500,000 seats in December, and has moved up to the second busiest global airport in December from seventh position in November, OAG said.
Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, China's Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport and Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport rounded off the top five busiest global hubs.
Dubai strengthened its position in December with six of the top 10 busiest international airline routes operating to and from the emirate, OAG said in a separate report.
The busiest international airline route globally for the Dubai airport in December was between Dubai and Riyadh, followed by Cairo-Jeddah and Dubai-London Heathrow.
Dubai-Jeddah, Dubai-Kuwait and Dubai-Karachi were also among the top 10 busiest international airline routes, OAG data showed.
11 cabbie-recommended restaurants and dishes to try in Abu Dhabi
Iqbal Restaurant behind Wendy’s on Hamdan Street for the chicken karahi (Dh14)
Pathemari in Navy Gate for prawn biryani (from Dh12 to Dh35)
Abu Al Nasar near Abu Dhabi Mall, for biryani (from Dh12 to Dh20)
Bonna Annee at Navy Gate for Ethiopian food (the Bonna Annee special costs Dh42 and comes with a mix of six house stews – key wet, minchet abesh, kekel, meser be sega, tibs fir fir and shiro).
Al Habasha in Tanker Mai for Ethiopian food (tibs, a hearty stew with meat, is a popular dish; here it costs Dh36.75 for lamb and beef versions)
Himalayan Restaurant in Mussaffa for Nepalese (the momos and chowmein noodles are best-selling items, and go for between Dh14 and Dh20)
Makalu in Mussaffa for Nepalese (get the chicken curry or chicken fry for Dh11)
Al Shaheen Cafeteria near Guardian Towers for a quick morning bite, especially the egg sandwich in paratha (Dh3.50)
Pinky Food Restaurant in Tanker Mai for tilapia
Tasty Zone for Nepalese-style noodles (Dh15)
Ibrahimi for Pakistani food (a quarter chicken tikka with roti costs Dh16)
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
Brief scores:
Liverpool 3
Mane 24', Shaqiri 73', 80'
Manchester United 1
Lingard 33'
Man of the Match: Fabinho (Liverpool)
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 720hp
Torque: 770Nm
Price: Dh1,100,000
On sale: now
The%20pillars%20of%20the%20Dubai%20Metaverse%20Strategy
%3Cp%3EEncourage%20innovation%20in%20the%20metaverse%20field%20and%20boost%20economic%20contribution%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EDevelop%20outstanding%20talents%20through%20education%20and%20training%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EDevelop%20applications%20and%20the%20way%20they%20are%20used%20in%20Dubai's%20government%20institutions%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EAdopt%2C%20expand%20and%20promote%20secure%20platforms%20globally%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EDevelop%20the%20infrastructure%20and%20regulations%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
Keane on …
Liverpool’s Uefa Champions League bid: “They’re great. With the attacking force they have, for me, they’re certainly one of the favourites. You look at the teams left in it - they’re capable of scoring against anybody at any given time. Defensively they’ve been good, so I don’t see any reason why they couldn’t go on and win it.”
Mohamed Salah’s debut campaign at Anfield: “Unbelievable. He’s been phenomenal. You can name the front three, but for him on a personal level, he’s been unreal. He’s been great to watch and hopefully he can continue now until the end of the season - which I’m sure he will, because he’s been in fine form. He’s been incredible this season.”
Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s instant impact at former club LA Galaxy: “Brilliant. It’s been a great start for him and for the club. They were crying out for another big name there. They were lacking that, for the prestige of LA Galaxy. And now they have one of the finest stars. I hope they can go win something this year.”
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
THE SPECS
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed dual clutch
Power: 710bhp
Torque: 770Nm
Speed: 0-100km/h 2.9 seconds
Top Speed: 340km/h
Price: Dh1,000,885
On sale: now
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
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