Dubai Airports returns to full operational capacity, CEO says

Dubai Airport CEO Paul Griffiths. Image credit: GIUSEPPE CACACE/ Getty Images

Dubai Airports has made significant strides in restoring and normalising operations after heavy rains disrupted travel at one of the world’s busiest aviation hubs, its CEO Paul Griffiths said on Saturday.

Griffiths since yesterday (Monday), Dubai International Airport (DXB) returned to its normal flight schedule and is back to operating around 1,400 flight movements a day.

“With roads in and around the airport 100 per cent clear of water accumulation, our manpower, logistics and facilities are operating as usual again. To have the airport back up and running is no small feat. 2,155 flights were cancelled and 115 were diverted,” said Griffiths.

The aviation veteran said Dubai Airports worked closely with its airline partners and service providers to rework schedules, boost manpower and look after travellers who were affected by the disruption.

Griffiths said 31 flights were diverted to Dubai World Central (DWC) from DXB. “Guest welfare remained a key priority throughout the disruption and although there were initial challenges in transporting supplies with road closures around DXB and DWC, over 75,000  food packs were delivered across both airports,” he said.

Meanwhile, Emirates and its sister airline flydubai restored normal flight schedules from DXB over the weekend after heavy rains caused severe flooding across the UAE last week.

Emirates cancelled nearly 400 flights and delayed many more as a result of a record storm that hit the city last week, the airline’s president Sir Tim Clark said in an open letter on Saturday.

Clark said the carrier had provided 12,000 hotel rooms and 250,000 meal vouchers to customers who were affected. He added that it would take more days to clear the backlog of rebooked passengers and bags while appealing for “customers’ patience and understanding.”

Emirates has put together a task force to sort, reconcile and deliver some 30,000 pieces of left-behind baggage to their owners.

flydubai also returned to its full flight schedule from DXB’s Terminal 2 and Terminal 3 on Saturday following the weather-related disruption.

Read: Emirates, flydubai return to normal schedule from Dubai airport