Abu Dhabi's new runway inaugurated; phased opening of Terminal 3
13 Oct 2008
The Abu Dhabi Airports Company (ADAC) has announced the opening of its second runway at Abu Dhabi International Airport.
The runway was inaugurated with an Etihad A320 becoming the first plane to take off carrying a party of media at 10.30, and then touching down after a brief flight of ten minutes. The second runway is now operational for arrivals and departures. Its main construction was completed in early September, following which it was certified by the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA).
The new runway cost AED 1 billion, and is 4,100 metres in length. It is located two kilometres north of the existing runway. Work had begun on the project in May 2006, and includes the construction and development of the airstrip, two major taxi-ways, two cross-field taxi-ways and two fire stations.
Speaking on the occasion, ADAC chairman Khalifa Al Mazrouei said that the ADAC had achieved significant progress in the journey to transform Abu Dhabi International into a world class gateway airport. He said the new runway will form a key part of the ADAC's plan to increase total capacity at the airport that will culminate with the construction and completion of the midfield terminal facility.
ADAC said operations at its new Terminal 3 facility had also commenced, and that it had adopted a phased approach to the opening of the new terminal. Departures started early last month, using the bus gates and lounges at Terminal 3, ahead of accepting arrival of aircraft.
In the next phase, passengers will check in through Terminal 3, and the final phase will cover the inauguration of a 4000 square metre full duty-free retail and food and beverage village early in 2009.
Mazrouei said that this phased approach would allow ADAC to protect customer service levels and iron-out potential glitches associated with the opening of a new building, particularly challenges ''faced with a new airport terminal opening."
The second runway at Abu Dhabi International Airport is part of a five-year $6.8 billion expansion plan for the airport. A 110 metre-tall control tower which is also part of the plan is nearing completion.
Abu Dhabi Airports Company CEO Rudy Vercelli said the passenger who used the airport in the last 12 months had broken the previous record of 8.5 million. He said that the first runway handles around 91,000 aircraft movements annually, and the two runway system would give ADAC ''incredible capacity, capability and flexibility to handle traffic''.
Abu Dhabi Airports Company is also reported to have acquisition plans for the international market, with announcements about the same ''in due course''. Mazrouei said that ADAC was ''looking at and screening airport assets'' in terms of international investment, and will announced specific interests ''when the right time arrives''.
