Lenghty Dubai Airport passport control queues could soon be a thing of the past thanks to a new high-tech system which is under consideration by the organisation that runs Dubai International Airport.

An official for Dubai Airport has revealed that one of the systems would improve the process of predicting passenger numbers at Dubai Airport, enabling immigration chiefs to ensure enough staff are on duty at peak periods.

Another of the systems which Dubai Airport are planning to introduce will send a boarding pass to the passenger’s mobile phone. Scanners at various points throughout Dubai airport would automatically detect the boarding pass on the handset, removing the necessity for it to be displayed to security staff.

Details of the innovations were revealed by Jill Nealon, senior vice-president of HR and development at Dubai Airports.

“The customer will see reduced queuing times and quicker processing times when they go through Dubai airport, that’s because technology will be doing a lot of the checks, rather than individuals.”

“A bottleneck in a queue is often caused due to all of the counters not being open at Dubai Airport. It is not because people do not care, it is because the duty manager on that day at immigration, for example, does not know that there has been an aircraft delay, a divert or 4 late inbound aircraft, so he does not open all the desks and put all his immigration officers in.”

At present this sort of information is passed on verbally, but Ms Nealon said this arrangement was not sustainable.

“The new technology systems will enable managers at Dubai Airport to look at one computerised set of information that will predict what the flows will be, and they will be able to make sure all the desks are open when they need to be open.”

Other innovations will be introduced at the world’s first concourse designed specifically to handle the Airbus A380 double-decker jet, which is currently being built at Dubai airport. When the concourse opens next year, passengers will notice a new approach to shopping.

“The customer will see a whole different range of luxury retail and food and beverage outlets that we are not able to currently offer because of space constraints,” added Ms Nealon.

“A few years ago people used to come through Dubai Airport specifically because of Dubai Duty Free, that was a big world brand, and obviously that’s got a little tired now as time’s gone on and other airports have come through.

“What we hope to do is refresh that and bring back to life that reason for coming to Dubai Airport. Even if you are going to Australia you will want to transit through Dubai Airport because the offering and the experience will be so much richer.”

Ms Nealon was speaking in Dubai at the HR Leaders Forum, which was held alongside the Careers UAE recruitment fair for nationals.

“We have 50 different nationalities across our organisation and we have 3,500 employees.

“We are proud of the fact that we have 29% Emiratis in our business and we have 40% at supervisory levels and above. We have an active campaign to increase that.”

Careers UAE continues tomorrow at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

Dubai is set to overtake Heathrow by 2016 as the world’s largest international airport.

Last year Heathrow Airport handled 69.4 million passengers. With both parties opposing expansion and the building of a 3rd runway, it is set to be overtaken by Dubai international.

By 2020 Dubai Airport expects to cater for 90 million passengers due to the expansion of existing terminals and the construction of a new one capable of handling 20 giant Airbus A380s.

Even this is nothing compared to Dubai’s plans for a new monster airport by the middle of the next decade, Al Maktoum Airport at Dubai World Central.

With 5 runways, it is anticipated that Al Maktoum Airport will be able to handle 160 million people by the late 2020′s.

Its expansion plans along with the aggressive growth of Paris and Frankfurt has intensified pressure from aviation and business leaders for the Government to have a change of heart.

Katja Hall, the CBI’s Chief Policy Director, warned that Britain was in danger of becoming a “branch line” unless action was taken.

“The 11 major policy reviews on airport capacity since the last full-length runway was opened in the south of England in 1948 illustrate the degree of political challenge here. But the consequences of this indecision can no longer be ignored,”

“The UK is becoming a branch-line destination on the route map of global airlines. This is a damaging break in the UK’s export chain, and its consequences are a real concern for businesses across the country.”

Willie Walsh, the head of the International Airlines Group, welcomed the Coalition’s decision to re-open the debate on runway capacity in the South East, but added that all options should be considered.

James Hogan, the chief executive of Etihad, also called for Heathrow to be allowed to expand.

“We currently fly 3 services a day into Heathrow, we would like to operate 5.

“Heathrow will not be able to compete unless it opens another runway.”

The 12th edition of the Dubai Airport Show will be held on the 22nd-24th May at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre (DICEC) under the patronage of 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.

Organised by Reed Exhibitions Middle East, the biggest biennial event in the Mena region and Indian subcontinent offers aviation industry professionals the ideal networking platform to explore the latest technologies and innovations. Over the years, the Dubai Airport show has positioned itself as a pivotal networking platform offering a wealth of industry knowledge and insights into airports expansions and development projects in the region. The Airport Show caters for all airport related sectors from security, operation, ground support, air traffic control, supply chain, technology to design and construction.

As many as 205 exhibitors have already signed up for the 2012 edition of the show, including some of the world’s biggest leaders in the aviation industry. This edition will feature 5 country pavilions from the UK, China, Denmark, Germany, France and Switzerland.

Over 49 members from airports and aviation authorities from the region have confirmed their attendance to the show. In addition, free seminars will be held during the 3 day exhibition offering attendees a wealth of insights into the industry’s trends, growth prospects and performance. Up to 25 presentations will be held by key industry players focusing on a variety of vital topics and challenges facing the aviation sector on a global and regional perspective.

The dedicated zones, which have been designed by local boutique Almax Design, have been introduced to replace traditional information desks at Dubai airport.

HH Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, chairman of Dubai Airports commented…

“Service and innovation have long been the hallmark of Dubai, and form the foundation upon which the emirate’s economic success has been built. These new way-finding technologies are just another example of how Dubai and Dubai Airports are maintaining that proud tradition and leading the way when it comes to service.”

Amongst the highlights are the 40-inch LCD touch-screens, developed by ATM provider NCR, which display sleek maps of Dubai airport and offer directions to boarding gates, restaurants and other facilities. Passengers can also scan their boarding passes for personalised directions to their gate, while printed map cards will also be available at the kiosks.

Trained staff will still be present at Dubai Airport to deal with queries, meaning passengers can choose a medium that suits them best, with the new facilities located across all three terminals.

Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports said…

“With more than 50 million people catching more than 300,000 flights from Dubai airport every year, providing the right information to our passengers as soon as it is requested is vital to maintaining our high service standards. The new technology unveiled today, together with our highly competent staff, takes our service to a new level and brings us a step closer to our aim of becoming the world’s best airport.”

Passenger traffic in January reached 4.852 million passengers, surpassing the previous record of 4,724,109 of July 2011, and a 14% increase compared to 4.254 million recorded in January 2011.

The 14% upsurge is the largest month-on-month increase in 14 months. This performance brings Dubai Airport’s rolling 12-month passenger numbers to 51.57 million and builds on the historic 50.98 million passengers recorded in 2011.

Spurred by the launch of Emirates airline’s new routes to Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires, South America was the strongest market in terms of percentage passenger growth in January (+71.4%), followed by Russia and CIS (+57.3%) driven by the expansion of Dubai’s low cost carrier flydubai in the region, and the AGCC (+36.9%) as a result of growth in Saudi Arabian traffic. Eastern Europe (20.6%) and Australasia (16.7%) also achieved high growth rates.

Total aircraft movements for Dubai International Airport rose 8.4% to 29,680 compared to 27,385 last January.

Cargo volumes contracted 2.6% to 173,531 tonnes compared to 178,199 tonnes in January last year reflecting on-going weaker global airfreight demand and fragile consumer confidence.

Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports said..

“It is fitting that we started a record-breaking year with record monthly passenger numbers. Our projections indicate 2012 traffic totals will reach 56.5 million, obliterating last year’s record of 51 million. The fantastic start to the year is partially due to the traffic surge caused by the holiday season, the recently concluded Dubai Shopping Festival and the on-going expansion of the hub network.”

Dubai International Airport is currently the 4th-busiest airport worldwide for international passenger and cargo traffic. The opening of Dubai Airport Concourse 3, the A380 facility dedicated for use by Emirates Airline, next year will take Dubai Airport’s capacity from 60 million to 75 million.

Emirates is set to add more than 2,000 seats a week to and from Dubai to Newcastle when it introduces a larger aircraft on its daily flight from Newcastle to Dubai from 1st September.

A 428-seat Boeing 777-300ER, the longest aircraft to ever operate from Newcastle Airport will replace a 278-seat Airbus A330-200 on the route with a capacity increase of more than 50%.

The upgrade comes on the 5th anniversary of the route’s launch. Since 1st September, 2007, almost 700,000 passengers have travelled with Emirates to and from Newcastle.

Emirates’ Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, Europe & Russian Federation, Salem Obaidalla said..

“Our Newcastle service has come of age and with demand continuing to increase, this is the right time for Emirates to be expanding its capacity from the North East. With the introduction of this larger aircraft, we will offer almost 6,000 seats every week to and from Newcastle and Dubai. Since we commenced services, more than 175,000 overseas passengers have travelled with Emirates to Newcastle from across our global network, boosting tourism and business in the North East,”

Emirates’ key destinations for North East travellers include Dubai, Bangkok, Sydney, Perth, Beijing, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Mauritius.

The Boeing 777-300ER is the backbone of the Emirates fleet, with 65 in service and a further 86 on order. The airline will offer a 2-class configuration with a choice of 42 lie-flat beds in Business Class and 386 seat in Economy Class. Throughout the aircraft, passengers will be able to experience the airline’s award-winning ice in-flight entertainment system with a choice of over 600 channels on-demand.

Since the route was launched, the airline has carried more than 10 million kilos of cargo on its Newcastle service, helping companies across the region to export their goods across the globe.

Popular commodities being shipped include oil rig equipment, car parts, personal effects and pharmaceuticals.  The arrival of the larger aircraft will mean an increase in cargo carrying capacity of some 22% to over 16,000 kilos per flight.

Dave Laws, the airport’s chief executive, said..

“This is a very significant announcement for Newcastle International. We are absolutely delighted Emirates will begin operating a larger Boeing 777-300ER from the airport on its 5th anniversary year at the airport.”

For more details on this route and to book your flight see our section on Flights to Dubai from Newcastle

One of the world’s fastest growing airlines Emirates, has opened its first airport lounge on the west coast at San Francisco International Airport. The new Emirates lounge in San Francisco represents a $4 million investment in the Bay Area.

The San Francisco Emirates lounge has been designed with the same attention to detail as Emirates’ lounges throughout the world, including the airline’s award-winning facility at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, named one of the 2011 “Top Airport Lounges in North America” by Frommers.

The grand opening was celebrated with a ribbon cutting ceremony by Mohammed Mattar, Divisional Senior Vice President Airport Services, Jim Baxter, Emirates’ Vice President of USA, Central America ‘&’ Caribbean and Herman Wai, Airport Services Manager SFO.

Mr Matter Said..

“Emirates’ customers have come to rely on our superior service both in the air and on the ground. We are proud to bring our award winning lounge product and our trademark hospitality and service to San Francisco with the opening of the Emirates Lounge at SFO. With complimentary chauffeur drive service to and from the airport for First and Business Class travellers, customers in the Bay Area, Silicon Valley and San Francisco can now look forward to a seamless and stress-free experience from the start to the finish of their journey,”

The 9,502 square foot space features the largest dining area of all San Francisco’s Airport lounges, it is also the only lounge with a dedicated prayer room. Signature features include Italian marble floors, gold Rolex clocks and rich timber joinery. It features two-levels, purpose-built elevators, an internal staircase that connects the reception entrance on level 3 with the lounge below, and direct access to the boarding bridge.

Facilities and amenities also include two 60 inch LED TVs, 56 leather armchairs, shower facilities and a business centre. Lounge guests enjoy an a la carte service of complimentary hot and cold gourmet dishes. Formal and informal seating options in the dining area are accompanied by a full bar service.

The Emirates Lounge at SFO is configured to seat up to 130 First and Business class passengers, and Skywards Gold members traveling from San Francisco to Dubai. The lounge is open from noon to 4:00pm daily.

Dubai is already renowned around the world for its magnificent shopping facilities, malls and stores. The emirate of Dubai is attracting a growing host of international retailers and there are now in fact more global brands in Dubai than in Paris or New York.

Dubai’s popularity as a shopping destination is particularly increasing with British visitors who were the number one spenders at this year’s Dubai Shopping Festival.

There is a huge range of retail outlets to choose from.There is now more than 50 modern shopping malls in Dubai selling tax free goods including the world’s largest, The Dubai Mall.

For an authentic local experience shoppers in Dubai should visit the traditional souks where they can find some fantastic gold and clothing bargains or fragrant spices. Modern souks can also be explored such as those at Souk Madinat Jumeirah and Souk Al Bahar.

The perfect time for the discerning shopper and families alike to visit Dubai is between 17th June and 7th August, when the Dubai Summer Surprises festival takes place. During the event Dubai’s shopping malls are transformed into live entertainment, music and dance venues.

Best of all, the Dubai mall’s vendors collaborate to offer major discounts across a large range of products including high street clothing, couture fashion and traditional Arabian crafts and furniture. There are also special activities and competitions for kids that will keep the little ones entertained.

CEO Paul Griffiths has announced on the Dubai-based Business Breakfast radio programme that Dubai Airport’s Concourse 3 Terminal is targeting a January 2013 opening.

The world’s first dedicated facility for A380′s will be home to Emirates’ growing fleet of superjumbos and feature dedicated first and business class lounges.

The expansion will help grow Dubai airport’s passenger capacity from 60 million to 75 million. Complementing Concourse 3 will be a 4th concourse, due to open in 2015, and an expanded Terminal 2 at Dubai Airport.

The new projects are designed to bridge Dubai Airport’s capacity gap ahead of the second phase of Al Maktoum Airport at Dubai World Central.

Emirates and Alaska Airlines have announced the launch of a new frequent flier partnership that will offer travelers the opportunity to accrue Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles when they fly to any of Emirates’ 118 destinations worldwide, including points across Africa, India and the Middle East.

Emirates Skywards members can also accrue miles across the Alaska Airlines network in the United States (including Alaska and Hawaii), Canada and Mexico.

Emirates’ Senior Vice President of Commercial Operations for the Americas Nigel Page said..

“As part of our commitment to Seattle, we are launching our service by partnering with Seattle’s hometown airline to offer customers the convenience of a frequent flier partnership as well as one-stop check-in and through checked baggage. Emirates looks forward to welcoming Alaska Airlines customers with our affordably luxurious service both on the ground and in the air.”

Emirates, the largest operator of Boeing 777 aircraft in the world, will operate a daily nonstop flight from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to Dubai aboard an ultra-long range B777-300ER from 1st March 2012 . Seattle joins Emirate’s existing U.S. gateways in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston and most recently, Dallas/Fort Worth.

Under the new partnership, travelers connecting between any point on Alaska Airlines and Emirates’ networks will be able to check in for their flights at either carrier’s counter, receive their boarding passes and check their bags to their final destination.

Alaska Airline’s managing director, Caroline Boren said..

“Alaska Airlines is delighted to welcome Emirates as our newest Mileage Plan partner. Our customers will be able to earn and redeem miles on Emirates — a carrier admired for its service and quality and with a route network that gives our members even more access to global destinations.”

Miles flown on Emirates will count toward qualification for Alaska’s MVP elite level program. To celebrate the new partnership, both airlines are offering double miles on each others’ flights starting 1st March through 31st May 2012. To earn Double Miles, members must register their Skywards number at skywards.com or Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan number at alaskaair.com* prior to their first qualifying flight.

Emirates Airlines

Emirates currently serves 118 cities around the world with a young and technologically advanced fleet of 168 wide-bodied aircraft that are equipped with industry-leading comforts in the air. Additionally, Emirates has 237 wide-bodied aircraft on order, worth more than US$84 billion, and is the leading customer of the Airbus A380, with 20 in its fleet and 70 on order.

Renowned for its excellence in service and innovation, both on board and on the ground, Emirates holds an impressive array of prestigious awards, most recently including Air Transport World’s 2011 “Airline of the Year” award and Frommer’s selection of the Emirates Lounge at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport as one of the 2011 “Top Airport Lounges in North America.”

Emirates was also awarded the “World’s Best Airline In-flight Entertainment” for the 7th year at the 2011 Skytrax World Airline Awards. Additionally, Fast Company magazine ranked Emirates on “The Fast Company 50″ list in 2009 as one of the “World’s Most Innovative Companies.”

Operations on Emirates from New York, Houston, Los Angeles and San Francisco connect America to the world through the airline’s route network with extensive connections from Dubai to the Far East, Australia and Africa. Emirates will begin operating out of Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) and Seattle-Tacoma International (SEA) Airports on 2nd February, and 1st March 2012, respectively.

Alaska Airlines

Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, serve 90 cities through an expansive network in Alaska, the Lower 48, Hawai’i, Canada and Mexico. Alaska Airlines ranked “Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among Traditional Network Carriers” in the J.D. Power and Associates 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 North America Airline Satisfaction StudiesSM.

*Registration is required prior to first qualifying flight in order to receive Double Miles. Double Miles valid only on qualifying paid flights marketed and operated by Emirates and Alaska Airlines. Travel is valid from 1st March 2012, through 31st May 2012. Flight miles must be credited to the member’s Emirates Skywards or Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan account only in order to earn Double Miles. All travel must be completed by 31st May 2012. Not valid on free or award travel. Please allow 4 to 6 weeks for travel and Bonus Miles to be credited. Offer subject to change without notice.

Double Miles do not count toward elite status in Mileage Plan or tier status in Skywards. All terms and conditions of the Emirates Skywards and Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan(tm) program apply.

See here for more information on Flights to Dubai