Cutting-edge aviation technology from AI to electric aircraft will help to reimagine passengers' journeys through Dubai's new $35bn passenger terminal at Al Maktoum International Airport.
A “massive leap” in aviation technology at the new terminal will dismantle the old ways of processing passengers through airports and get rid of choke-points through the hub for faster travel, Paul Griffiths, chief executive of Dubai Airports, told The National on Monday.
“Airports have a habit of legacy processes but we're determined to engineer this out. There will be huge investments in automation to make the customer service ethos better and to improve the quality of what we deliver. We've only scratched the service of what AI will deliver in this,” he said.
“Watch this space. The operating model of the airport will be very different from what we have seen.”
A surge in demand for air travel is placing “extraordinary pressure” on existing and new airports, national borders and airline resources, according to an April white paper on biometrics by Sita, an IT provider for the air transport industry.
The existing paper-based and manual travel infrastructure and legacy processes “simply won’t be able to cope”, according to the paper.
The solution is to leverage the power of facial and fingerprint biometrics to create a smoother and safer air travel experience, it said. Advanced technology will also help to solve other aviation industry challenges such as space constraints, specialist staff shortages and evolving passenger wants.
The global demand for travel is rising and biometrics is at the “forefront of this transformation” as the number of air travellers is set to double to eight billion annually by 2040, up from four billion in 2019, according to projections by the International Air Transport Association (Iata).
Dubai Airports has already made investments in biometric technology to funnel more people through Dubai International Airport faster, with the aim of increasing its capacity to 120 million passengers annually.
The first phase of the new passenger terminal at Al Maktoum Airport is expected to be ready within 10 years, with the capacity to accommodate 150 million passengers annually.
The new airport terminal, spread across 70 square kilometres, will feature 400 aircraft gates, five parallel runways and new aviation technology.
That technology will focus on “the ability to eliminate legacy processes that we've had to endure for so long,” Mr Griffiths said.
“I can't think of another commodity that makes you book and then you go to the airport and reaffirm that you want that product.”
Future-proofing the new airport
Operator Dubai Airports is now in the detail design phase of the project during which decisions must be made on the hub's final configuration, operations, relationship with ground transport, customer service plan, F&B and retail strategy.
“With the design process, it is imperative that we rethink what the fundamentals of airports are: they are a way of ensuring the smooth and seamless transition from ground to air, that’s the whole rationale of having an airport,” Mr Griffiths said.
“We are taking a long, hard look at that in the design process.”
This also means that internal and external rail networks, road transport, electric aircraft technology, executive jets and budget airlines will be “incredibly important” elements for the efficiency of the new terminal, he said.
Dubai has signed an agreement with US-based electric aircraft maker Joby Aviation to launch passenger air taxi services in the emirate, which Joby expects to start as early as next year.
Built into the new airport terminal design is the flexibility to incorporate technology currently available today and emerging tech that develops over the years.
“Flexibility, imagination and collaboration are what we need to make it work effectively,” Mr Griffiths said.
The new terminal design, despite its ability to accommodate more runway movements, will take into account sustainable operations, the Dubai Airports boss said.
“We are all learning from climate change and there’s an acceptance that you cannot regard heavy rain as a minor event. We need to invest in systems and infrastructure to deal with climate change,” he said.
This will entail major investments in sustainability in terms of solar power, waste treatment, biofuels and a “huge number of initiatives” to combat the impact of climate change, Mr Griffiths said.
Dubai International Airport (DXB), the world's largest hub by international traffic for 10 consecutive years, struggled to clear a backlog of flights after a record-breaking rainstorm in the UAE earlier this month.
DXB resumed normal operations days after the storm flooded taxiways, forcing flight diversions, delays and cancellations.
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
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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
Ireland (15-1):
Ireland (15-1): Rob Kearney; Keith Earls, Chris Farrell, Bundee Aki, Jacob Stockdale; Jonathan Sexton, Conor Murray; Jack Conan, Sean O'Brien, Peter O'Mahony; James Ryan, Quinn Roux; Tadhg Furlong, Rory Best (capt), Cian Healy
Replacements: Sean Cronin, Dave Kilcoyne, Andrew Porter, Ultan Dillane, Josh van der Flier, John Cooney, Joey Carbery, Jordan Larmour
Coach: Joe Schmidt (NZL)
Barings Bank
Barings, one of Britain’s oldest investment banks, was
founded in 1762 and operated for 233 years before it went bust after a trading
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Barings Bank collapsed in February 1995 following colossal
losses caused by rogue trader Nick Lesson.
Leeson gambled more than $1 billion in speculative trades,
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Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
How does ToTok work?
The calling app is available to download on Google Play and Apple App Store
To successfully install ToTok, users are asked to enter their phone number and then create a nickname.
The app then gives users the option add their existing phone contacts, allowing them to immediately contact people also using the application by video or voice call or via message.
Users can also invite other contacts to download ToTok to allow them to make contact through the app.
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
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4/5 stars
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Delhi Dragons: Ronaldinho
Bengaluru Royals: Paul Scholes
Mumbai Warriors: Ryan Giggs
Chennai Ginghams: Hernan Crespo
Telugu Tigers: Deco
Kerala Cobras: Michel Salgado
ITU Abu Dhabi World Triathlon
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Rating: 3/5
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Four stars
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
