Dubai’s ruler has endorsed a $US32 billion ($A35 billion) expansion plan for the city’s second airport that aims to make it the world’s biggest, the emirate’s airport operator said in the latest sign that the Middle East’s brash commercial hub is determined to move on from its 2009 financial crisis.
The approval sets in motion a vast building project that will boost capacity exponentially at the airport known as Al-Maktoum International at Dubai World Central
Backers envision it will eventually handle more than 200 million passengers per year

The first phase of the expansion alone aims to build enough runway and terminal space to handle 120 million passengers a year and 100 mammoth Airbus A380 double-decker jets at any given time

Dubai World Central opened for cargo flights in 2010 with a single runway in the desert south of central Dubai. It received its first passengers in October at a single terminal that is mainly used by smaller airlines and low-cost carriers. The currently larger Dubai International ranked as the world’s seventh busiest airport last year, handling 66.4 million passengers. It too is being expanded, with a new concourse expected to open next year. Griffiths says Dubai needs to expand to keep pace with the rapid growth of airline traffic into the emirate
Much of the increase comes from hometown airline Emirates, the region’s largest carrier and the world’s biggest user of both the A380 and Boeing 777 long-haul jets
Emirates is expected to move its hub to the new airport shortly after the first expansion phase is complete, freeing up space in the older airport for the well over 100 other airlines that already operate from it

Griffiths is confident Dubai will be able to generate the funding needed to complete the project given the importance of aviation to Dubai’s economy
Officials say the industry contributes $US22 billion ($A24 billion) annually to the local economy and supports some 250,000 jobs