Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed reviews progress of Dubai International Airport runway repair work

The 45-day upgrade work is nearing completion and runway will open to traffic on June 22

Dubai Airport’s northern runway repairs programme is on track for completion on June 22. All photos: Dubai Media Office

Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed, president of Dubai Civil Aviation and chairman of Dubai Airports, on Wednesday reviewed the progress of the repair work.

Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed, president of Dubai Civil Aviation and chairman of Dubai Airports, pictured with team members carrying out the repair work. More than 400 engineers and experts and about 3,800 people are involved in the project.

Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed, president of Dubai Civil Aviation and chairman of Dubai Airports, on Wednesday reviewed the progress of repair work being carried out on the north runway at Dubai International Airport.

The runway upgrade started on May 9 and it is scheduled to open on June 22.

The work involves resurfacing the entire 4.5-kilometre-long northern runway, strengthening the wider runway strip, reinforcing the paving on major taxiway points and repairing drainage infrastructure.

Aeronautical ground lighting, navigational aids and meteorological equipment are also being replaced, and a navigation aids substation is being relocated.

During the site visit, Sheikh Ahmed was briefed on the progress and the work being carried out by various multinational teams.

“The North Runway Rehabilitation project is a remarkable step in our efforts to facilitate and cater for the continuous growth of passengers and support the air transport industry in the emirate,” he said.

“The general forecast for 2022 remains positive, with projections for annual traffic flow now estimated to reach 58.3 million passengers, exceeding initial forecasts by a significant margin.”

More than 400 engineers and experts and about 3,800 people are involved in the project.

“The northern runway was last fully resurfaced in 2014 and a major upgrade was scheduled for 2024, however, with lower aircraft movements due to the recovery from the pandemic, the quieter time provided an ideal opportunity to carry out the rehabilitation works with minimum impact on Dubai’s operations and growth,” Dubai Airports said last week.

Dubai International Airport is the base for long-haul airline Emirates and discount airline flydubai. The last time this level of work was carried out on the northern runway was in 2014, while in 2019, the site closed its southern runway from April 16 to May 30 for resurfacing and replacement of ground lighting.

The southern runway, meanwhile, is currently maintaining operations at the world’s busiest international airport.

While the runway work continues, the emirate's second hub, Dubai World Central (DWC), has been handling more than 1,000 flights from several international airlines, including flydubai, SpiceJet, Indigo, Gulf Air, Air India Express and Qatar Airways, during the 45-day runway upgrade.