Coronavirus: Dubai Airports sets aside gates for high-risk flights

Certain passengers may also have to undergo nasal swabbing and non-intrusive thermal imaging

A first glimpse of the new Dubai Airports command control room, where controllers monitor thousands of flights. All photos by Chris Whiteoak / The National

On the busiest days Dubai International Airport handles about 1,100 flights, with one taking off every 76 seconds.

About 280,000-plus passengers per day pass through - that's 192 per minute

Damian Ellacott, vice president of the Airport Operations Control Centre, at the launch on Wednesday

Paul Griffiths, chief executive of Dubai Airports and Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed, chairman of Emirates Group, open the control centre

About 120 staff work to ensure Dubai International and Dubai World Central operate seamlessly 265 days per year

Dubai Airports has allocated seven gates to screen high-risk passengers to bolster efforts to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus, a top official said.

There are strict checks in place to assess the medical condition of passengers arriving from Beijing, Syria, Lebanon and Italy, said Damian Ellacott, vice president of operations at the new control centre.

If passengers from these countries alert the thermal screens, then they may also need to undergo nasal swabbing.

"We are currently screening passengers from certain flights and we have a number of gates assigned for those processes with thermal screening cameras in place," Mr Ellacott told The National.

“We also have the ability to carry out nasal swabbing on certain passengers.”

Airport teams are working with Dubai Health Authority officials to tackle the virus.

Passengers arriving at Dubai International Airport may have to go through thermal imaging to screen passengers for Covid-19. Officials monitor cameras that show if passengers have a high body temperature, suggesting a fever.

Those who come from high-risk countries may be screened twice.

The screenings at the airports only take a few minutes, without causing delays and discomfort to passengers, Mr Ellacott said.

"We are making it a priority that it should affect the customer journey as little as possible.

“When a passenger disembarks from the aircraft and passes through the thermal screening area, it doesn’t interrupt the journey at all.

“The nasal swabbing does take more time but [the full process] only takes a few minutes, then they can go on their journey.

“I don’t have the exact number of minutes of additional delay that [the health screenings] are creating but the priority is firstly to comply with government directives and secondly, to make sure it is as little a distraction to passengers,” he said.

Mr Ellacott spoke after Dubai Airports officially opened its high-tech control room on Wednesday, which monitor operations at the world's busiest airport.