Congestion in the skies above the Arabian Gulf is now threatening the growth plans of the regions’ airlines and airport hubs, according to leading aviation industry figures speaking at the first Global Airport Leaders’ Forum in Dubai.
A lack of effective coordination between the various national airspace managements across the GCC and airport administrations is causing flight delays and increases in fuel costs, the forum, sitting as part of The Airport Show, heard.
“The waiting time for planes hovering in the air over the runway, wasting precious aviation fuel is scandalous and air-traffic centres and airports need to work harmoniously across national boundaries to resolve this pressing problem,” Paul Griffiths, the chief executive of Dubai Airports, told the forum, which closed in Dubai yesterday.
Mr Griffiths said it was essential for the Middle East to have an integrated regional airspace solution that could generate the capacity and value that was greatly needed. He said “change was possible in the region given the necessary political will and partnerships with the experts who have done it before”.
Adel Ali, the chief executive of Air Arabia, the Middle East’s largest low-cost carrier, said the biggest problem airlines in the region would face “in the decades to come” was congestion in the air, and he added that while there was enough capacity on the ground, not enough was being done to increase air-traffic management capacity.
“It seems ridiculous to imagine that the same journey, from, let’s say anywhere in the GCC to Dubai, which once would have taken 45 minutes, now takes one hour and 10 minutes, and that is with even faster airplanes – all thanks to the airspace restrictions, adding up to costs and congestions to airport operations,” he added.
Paul Reid, the managing director of the United Kingdom-based Nats, the air-traffic services and solutions company, said efficient air- traffic management (ATM) was key to airports’ ability to meet growing demand.
“ATM is an integral part of the aviation industry and it must be included in the early stages of any airport planning. It is an essential part of the jigsaw. Without effective ATM, an airport’s growth strategy and business model is at significant risk of not being realised,” he said.
Nats, which controls airspace in the UK, guiding about two million aircraft a year through some of the busiest and most complex airspace in the world, knows how important it is for ATM to be harmonised across nations, added Mr Reid.
Nats is working on ATM projects in Qatar and Kuwait, and has worked with Oman, Bahrain and at the new Al Maktoum Airport at the Dubai World Centre to support the safety, efficiency and environmental performance of the countries’ airspace.
“Our industry needs to fully exploit the capability within aircraft systems by linking the ground-based ATM systems with avionics technology within the planes, Mr Reid said. “Nats has the proven systems to help the Middle East achieve success in ATM. We have helped Gatwick to operate 55 flights an hour on a single runaway, and at Heathrow 90 movements per hour on two runways.
“Succeeding in developing ATM is achievable. It has already been done in other parts of world. Not developing ATM will have significant negative impacts on airports in the Middle East and will be a limiting factor for the industry.”
Waleed Youssef, the director for the Middle East region at Turkey’s Tav airports, said that ATM systems needed to be seamlessly integrated into an airport’s design from the planning stage onwards.
“Some European airports neglected to do so, largely concerned at costs they would entail, and they have paid the price for this omission. This is a vital link or the airport is no better than a parking lot,” he said, adding that efficiency, rather than more runways and infrastructure, was the key to making an airport function.
dblack@thenational.ae
The five pillars of Islam
Founders: Ines Mena, Claudia Ribas, Simona Agolini, Nourhan Hassan and Therese Hundt
Date started: January 2017, app launched November 2017
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Private/Retail/Leisure
Number of Employees: 18 employees, including full-time and flexible workers
Funding stage and size: Seed round completed Q4 2019 - $1m raised
Funders: Oman Technology Fund, 500 Startups, Vision Ventures, Seedstars, Mindshift Capital, Delta Partners Ventures, with support from the OQAL Angel Investor Network and UAE Business Angels
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
Four-day collections of TOH
Day Indian Rs (Dh)
Thursday 500.75 million (25.23m)
Friday 280.25m (14.12m)
Saturday 220.75m (11.21m)
Sunday 170.25m (8.58m)
Total 1.19bn (59.15m)
(Figures in millions, approximate)
The specs: 2018 Ducati SuperSport S
Price, base / as tested: Dh74,900 / Dh85,900
Engine: 937cc
Transmission: Six-speed gearbox
Power: 110hp @ 9,000rpm
Torque: 93Nm @ 6,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 5.9L / 100km
BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:
Ajax 2-3 Tottenham
Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate
Final: June 1, Madrid
Company%20Profile
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RESULT
Arsenal 2
Sokratis Papastathopoulos 45 4'
Eddie Ntkeiah 51'
Portsmouth 0
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
Company%20profile
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Mental%20health%20support%20in%20the%20UAE
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Hamilton profile
Age 32
Country United Kingdom
Grands Prix entered 198
Pole positions 67
Wins 57
Podiums 110
Points 2,423
World Championships 3
The%20specs
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 620bhp
Torque: 760Nm
Price: Dh898,000
On sale: now