Paul Griffiths, Chief Executive Officer, Dubai Airports.
18th edition of Airport Show introduces two new co-located events- Air Traffic Control (ATC) forum and Aviation Security conference.
DUBAI (UAE) – His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, Chairman of Dubai Airports, Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Airline and Group and Patron of Airport Show, opened the 18th edition of Airport Show in Dubai on Monday.
Opening the world’s largest annual aviation event, His Highness said contribution of the aviation sector to Dubai’s GDP has been growing steadily and is expected to reach 38 per cent, thus creating more jobs and aiding overall growth.
Speaking on the sidelines after touring the exhibition area, His Highness said on the new initiatives of the Dubai government to increase investments and instill confidence in the private sector, His Highness said: “The government wants to work with the private sector to bring in more traffic and business to Dubai to support the new initiatives.”
The 18th edition of Airport Show features two new co-located events, Air Traffic Control Forum, Airport Security Middle East, in addition to CAPA-Centre of Aviation Global Airport Leaders Forum (GALF) and Women in Aviation.
Dubai Civil Aviation Authority Director General HE Mohammed Abdullah Ahli said: “Our participation in the Show is in line with our objectives of benefiting from the latest knowledge and expertise along with the best practices in managing air traffic growth.”
The Middle East aviation industry is witnessing an exciting time with the region recording the second highest passenger traffic growth rate and continuing with its multi-billion-dollar airport expansion and modernisation programs. Whether it is the latest scanning technologies, passenger experiences or robot baggage handlers the region’s airports are investing in the latest of technology and concepts and stay ahead of competition. This exciting time in the industry will be reflected at the Airport Show 2018.”
The world’s largest annual aviation event brings together more than 300 exhibitors from over 90 countries under one roof to showcase their innovative and game-changing products offered to key decision-makers across the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia (MENASA) aviation industry, which is witnessing a massive growth.
The show is supported by International Civil Aviation Authority (ICAO), Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA), Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects (DAEP), Dubai Airports, dnata, Contractors Association and Shipping and Cargo Logistics Group (SCLG).
The show is held at a time when the aviation industry in the region is witnessing a ‘synchronized recovery’ and rapid growth after suffering socio-economic upheavals and geo-political storms following the debilitating global financial crisis in 2008.
Airport Security Middle East features a dedicated conference and exhibition hosting top officials from regional airport security departments and facilitating over 1,000 pre-scheduled meetings for airport security exhibitors.
The iconic B2B show occupies an exhibition space of 10,860 square metres at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre (DICEC), with larger participation expected by country pavilions from Germany, France, UK, Italy, Switzerland, USA and China.
Delivering the keynote Address at the Global Airport Leaders’ Forum (GALF), Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths said: “Technology will improve the airport experience for the future of travellers as most of things they hate today will be removed such as security hassle, long distance to the aircraft among others.”
“He said 10 million passengers take plane every day and it will go up to 21 million by 2035. Dubai has spent $12 billion on infrastructure to boost the capacity to 90 million at Dubai International airport.”
He said an all-encompassing ‘synchronized recovery’ is evident and the aviation industry is witnessing rapid growth after suffering socio-economic upheavals and geo-political storms following the debilitating global financial crisis in 2008. Airport Show organisers Reed Exhibitions said the show is a complete sell-out with 10 per cent increase in participation and space.
Daniyal Qureshi, Group Exhibition Director at Reed Exhibitions Middle East, said: “The Middle East region has been recording a phenomenal growth in terms of passengers as well in infrastructural investments. This has generated a tremendous interest from global aviation players and Airport Show provides an ideal platform bringing companies, organisations and decision-makers from all over the world on this platform to explore the latest technology as well as information.”
The new ATC Forum offers the air traffic management professionals a dedicated exhibition and conference, aimed at senior level decision-makers from ANSPs, CAAs, airports, airlines and the military.
Global interest in the Middle East aviation has remained strong given the excellent growth record. According to International Air Transport Association (IATA) global passenger traffic results for 2016 Middle East carriers had the strongest regional annual traffic growth for the fifth year in a row at 11.8 per cent compared with the global average of 6.3 per cent.
His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum opened Global Airport Leaders’ Forum
Cutting-edge technologies including artificial intelligence and biometrics will improve the airport experience for passengers and take the aviation industry to the next level with billions of dollars spending on infrastructure, according to industry experts at Global Airport Leaders’ Forum (GALF).
GALF kicked off with the keynote addresses by Paul Griffiths, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Airports, and Ibrahim Ahli, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Air Navigation Services (dans).
Griffiths said travel and tourism will buck the trend. Currently the industry supports 298 million jobs globally and by 2020 the figure will rise to 382 million. Most of the jobs will be created in Asia Pacific region. Around $7.6 trillion was contributed by the aviation industry to the global GDP during 2016 and it will be $11.5 trillion by 2027 globally.
“All these numbers show future travel looks very bright,” said Griffiths.
Earlier, His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, Chairman of Dubai Airports and Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Airline and Group, inaugurated this year’s GALF.
Speaking on the topic: ‘Travel & Tourism – The Beacon of Hope’ Griffiths highlighted the importance of innovative technologies that will change the shape of future travel and tourism.
He said that artificial intelligence (AI) will be a game changer for the future travel and it will ease the life of passengers.
He added that the machine will be faster, better and also cheaper for most of things ‘we do today.’ He said statistics show decline in employments in most sectors particularly industries because of the increasing role technology. The World Economic Forum study predicts 7.1 million jobs will disappear.
He said that today around 10 million passengers step onboard the aircraft every day around the world and by 2034 the number of passengers take planes will jump to 21 million globally. Again, the majority of growth will come from Asia Pacific region with 1.8 billion passengers in the next 15 years.
Ibrahim Ahli, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Air Navigation Services, mentioned that Dubai is a well-known name with a lot of successes in the aviation sector as a global travel hub.
He emphasised the importance of cutting-edge technologies couple with research and development. “We have a highly talented team and the team has delivered the projects that will shape the future of aviation.”
He said, “Dans for the first time in the history of UAE and entire Middle East region carried out a complete restructuring of air space in a mission to meet the everyday growing demand in the aviation sector. It’s capacity enhancement and further efficient utilisation of air space between civil and military departments.”
“We deliver average 1,500 aircraft movement daily in Dubai airspace,” he said and added that this figure is expected to growth significantly.
GALF is co-located with the 18th edition of the Airport Show, the world’s largest airport industry exhibition, at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre. An impressive line-up of influential leaders and experts from the world of aviation addressed the one-day GALF and discussed the global strategic challenges and opportunities facing airport operators, regulators and industry suppliers.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.
She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
