Dubai Airport’s 60th anniversary: Sheikh Mohammed recalls his ‘Destination Dubai’ dream

The Ruler of Dubai talked of his pride when Dubai International Airport overtook Heathrow to become the world's busiest airport in 2014

A rarely seen photograph of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid as a boy. Wam

This picture was taken in 1968 at Mons Officer Cadet School, which was a British military training establishment that closed in 1972, transferring its responsibilities to Sandhurst. Wam

At Mons Officer Cadet School in Aldesrhot, United Kingdom in 1968. Wam

A young Sheikh Mohammed performs Umrah in 1974. Wam

Pictured in the 1970s, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid was at the centre of efforts to build the country up following unification. Wam

"The worst things to affect a human being are vanity, megalomania, the belief in one's own power and his dependence on his limited mortal strength," Sheikh Mohammed wrote in a book about his life, My Story: 50 Stories in 50 years, published this year. Wam

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid in the Parade Ring on Day 2 of Royal Ascot week in June 1995. Getty

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, then Crown Prince of Dubai and UAE Minister of Defence, descends a Boeing 777 after opening the Dubai 1995 airshow November 12.

UAE Founding Father Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid watch the final race of the Annual Camel Festival at Nad Al Sheba in Dubai in April 1996. Wam / National Archives

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai with Rama the Cama, the world's first cross between an Old World camel and a South American camelid - in January 1998. AFP

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, who was Crown Prince of Dubai when this photo was taken, takes a break during a 100-km horse race beside the Sakkara pyramids in Cairo, Egypt, on May 19, 2000. Only 18 of the 75 horses that participated finished race and Sheikh Mohammed won with a riding time of five hours and 34 minutes. AP Photo

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid meets Tiger Woods after the 2004 Dubai Desert Classic played on the Majilis Course at the Emirates Golf Club on March 7 in Dubai. Warren Little / Getty

Sheikh Mohammed displays a falcon to US President George W Bush on 14 January 2008. WAM / AFP

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, and Queen Elizabeth II greet hundreds of spectators at Emirates Palace after they unveiled of a commemorative plaque to celebrate the commencement of construction of the Zayed National Museum on Thursday November 25, 2010. Andrew Henderson / The National

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, holds hands with Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al Azhar Dr Ahmad Al Tayeb during their visit to Abu Dhabi in February 2019. Mohamed Al Hammadi / Ministry of Presidential Affairs

Sheikh Mohammd bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, meets Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed , Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, at a Sea Palace barza in Abu Dhabi in April 2019. Mohamed Al Hammadi / Ministry of Presidential Affairs

Sheikh Mohammed stands for a photograph with Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, and Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed, chairman of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation, on his sons' wedding day in Dubai in May 2019. UAE Ministry of Presidential Affairs / AFP

Queen Elizabeth presents Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid with a trophy for the winning owner of the 4.20 Diamond Jubilee Stakes at the Royal Ascot in June 2019. Reuters

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, receives credentials from new ambassadors from various countries to the UAE in Qasr Al Watan in Abu Dhabi in June 2019. Wam

On Dubai Airport’s 60th anniversary, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, UAE Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, recalled the time when he first saw Heathrow Airport as a ten-year-old.

He shared a video on Twitter talking about how amazed he was when he saw the number of planes and people at the airport in London.

"I was around 10 years old when I realised that in Dubai we had the potential to become a big city for traders and tourists. It was just a feeling,” said the video.

“The first time I arrived at Heathrow Airport in London, I was amazed. At the end of the 1970s, I had a discussion with my father in the evening about a project I had named Destination Dubai.

“It was not only a project to develop the airport but also to develop the whole city.

“After several years, in 2014, British newspapers published stories with big headlines, 'Dubai Airport bypasses Heathrow as the largest airport in the world' and I remembered my amazement when I was 10 and thought to myself 'Subhan Allah'.”

Dubai became the world's busiest airport for international passenger traffic in 2014 when it overtook Heathrow Airport.

On Thursday, Dubai Airports marked the 60th anniversary of the official opening of Dubai International.

The Dubai International Airport was opened for civil aviation in July 1937 and by February 1938 there were approximately four Empire Flying Boats operations from the airport per week.

Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum ordered the construction of the airport in 1959 and it was officially opened in 1960.

It was the first airport in the Middle East to feature a gated terminal, along with the largest Air Traffic Control tower when Sheikh Rashid terminal opened in 2000, and the first to launch e-gates in 2002.

In 2008, it opened the largest airport terminal in the world (T3) and three years later the world’s first concourse purpose-built for the A380 (Concourse A).

Passenger aircraft operated by Emirates stand beside the terminal building at Dubai International Airport in Dubai during March. All photos by Bloomberg

Passenger aircraft operated by Emirates stand beside the terminal building at Dubai International Airport.

Multiple Airbus SE A380-800 aircraft, operated by Emirates, stand in a parking zone at Dubai International Airport.

Emirates Boeing Co. 777-300 aircraft are seen in a parking zone at Dubai International Airport.

An Airbus SE A380-800 aircraft, operated by Emirates, taxis past the terminal.

An Airbus SE A380-800, right, and a line of Boeing Co. 777-300 aircraft, operated by Emirates, stand in a parking zone at Dubai International Airport.

An Airbus SE A380-800 aircraft, operated by Emirates, takes off past the control tower.

An Airbus SE A380-800 aircraft, operated by Emirates, taxis at Dubai International Airport.

An Airbus SE A380-800 aircraft, right, stands alongside a line of Boeing Co. 777-300 aircraft at Dubai International Airport.

An airport access train departs the arrivals hall in Terminal Three at Dubai International Airport.

It is home to the world’s leading international airline and duty-free retail operation. The airport welcomed its billionth passenger in December 2018.

Dubai International Airport handled 86.4 million passengers in 2019, retaining its position as the world's busiest hub for international passengers for the sixth consecutive year.