Over the last few decades, the balance of global aviation has progressively shifted away from the archetypal markets of the United States and Europe to focus more on the Gulf region. As a result, the Gulf Cooperation Council has emerged as a major center for the aviation sector internationally. This council has grown steadily through time to emerge as the global leader in the aviation industry in different regional markets. In addition, there has been an increase in the commercial activity across the sector, ultimately resulting in the emergence of high-end national airlines including Dubai International Airport, Doha International Airport, and Bahrain International Airport. The Gulf’s strategic location also places it as a central aviation center that is close to two thirds of the global population at a flying distance of approximately eight hours. As such, it has established itself as a major link between the Western and Eastern worlds, thereby improving economic activities and overall efficiency. A comparative study of three airports (Dubai International Airport, Doha International Airport, and Bahrain International Airport) will be conducted to determine their evolution, significance to their populations and countries, and their value to the global air transport system. It is anticipated that findings from this study will shed light into the overall value of the Gulf Region as a central global aviation hub.

1.2 Hypothesis, statement/ features to be investigated

This study is designed to evaluate the different features of Dubai International Airport, Doha International Airport, and Bahrain International Airport that place them at the center of global aviation. A major aspect of consideration is why these airports succeeded in evolving extensively and the study will particularly focus on key aspects regarding their operational, economic, social, legal, and design considerations. To this extent, the hypothesis that this research aims to test is that the aforementioned strategic considerations of each airport have played a significant role in establishing the Gulf region as a leading aviation hub in the global space, ultimately strengthening the value of the Gulf region in the global economy.

1.3 Research questions and objectives

This research will be guided by the following research questions:

How do the three airports compare in how they have evolved to their current status?
What value do the three airports present to the populations they serve?
What is the value of the three airports to their countries?
What is the role of the three airports in the World’s Air Transport System as a whole?

2 Contextualisation, importance of the problem, scaling of the phenomenon

There are different ways of quantifying the impact of airports on driving a country’s economy including investment and tourism, the flows of trade into and out of the country, the employment opportunities created, and the overall supply chain. Increased air transport in the Gulf region has had a major impact on the region’s economic growth and it is important to identify these impacts in addition to how they compare across different countries. The selected airports provide an overview of the air transport industry in Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia, focusing on airports’ expenditures and revenues aeronautical and non-aeronautical expenses against CAPEX and OPEX.

It is also important to determine the different business models integrated into each airport and conduct a comparison between them to evaluate their overall efficiency. Comparing the models used by each airport would be instrumental in understanding their business structures and their overall performance. The Shim et al. (2) outline that there are two main approaches that can be integrated by an airport as part of its business model. The first approach is a dual till system which separates the aeronautical from non-aeronautical practices based on expenditure and income accounts. Using this approach, income generated from aeronautical activities is generally used for other expenditures within this scope such as terminal development and runway repairs. Similarly, non-aeronautical activities typically fund non-aeronautical expenses such as developing the retail section. The second approach is the single-till system in which the airport’s revenues are all used as one source to cover all expenses. The Airports Council International, however, discourages against using the latter approach as it might eliminate the inventive for airports to operate commercial activities. This is primarily because it might lead to lower revenues on the aeronautical side, ultimately compromising a potential source of value creation (Shim et al. 2).

The Gulf region has emerged as an aviation center over the recent past as evidenced from the annual passenger flows chart highlighted below. A report by the International Air Transport Association (2) also revealed that shippers and passengers receive the most significant benefits from air transport within the region, with the respective governments following suit. The regional economy also benefits in terms of higher tourist traffic and exportation enterprises in different parts of the region or countries. For example, Figure 2 highlights the economic benefits to the United Arab Emirates as a direct or indirect result of increased traffic from the Dubai International Airport.

Figure 1 Annual passenger flow to the Gulf region

Figure 2 Source: International Air Transport Association

3 Literature review

Airport management is an important element of the air transport industry that is presenting as a crucial aspect that ought to be addressed. Generally, airports offer a wide range of social and economic benefits, but it is also vital to consider their sustainability and environmental impacts, which are persistently increasing as a result of high traffic. For the effective implementation of a system, it is vital to ensure proper organizational change focused on suitable structures, responsibilities, and definite roles. To this extent, there is a need to understand how airlines are operated in the Gulf region and the impacts that they generally have on their countries and the overall population.

Research by Grosche et al. (12) shows that by 2032, there will be a significant growth in air traffic (both passenger and cargo) across the Middle East to the point of outperforming other regions on a global scale. This growth can primarily be attributed to the Gulf’s strategic location in addition to the expanding airport infrastructure and fleet expansion. With a growth in the airline sector, it is anticipated that the aviation industry would grow altogether. This growth would ultimately play an instrumental role in facilitating the achievement of the Gulf’s overall ambitions particularly with regards to the aircraft supply chain. The industry’s growth would also impact the aircraft maintenance industry (Will 1). The Gulf’s air transport industry has placed itself in a suitable position to effectively negotiate towards enhancing the local market and strengthening its position in the maintenance and the manufacturing industries.

Yun (176) also adds that over the years, the Gulf has succeeded in effectively exploiting its strategic geographic location to increase overall success by complementing this location with high-end airport infrastructure. Consequently, it managed to establish a deep-rooted standing within the air transport industry as an international aviation hub. Some of the states benefiting from this global position include the United Arab Emirates and Qatar which have established sophisticated airports in major cities including Doha, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi. They also host some of the busiest airports (Dubai International Airport-DXB and Doha International Airport-DOH) and fastest growing global carriers such as Qatar Airways and Emirates Airline. According to Ziadah (177), DXB is currently the largest airport in the Gulf region with among the highest passenger traffic around the world. The two countries have also been credited as being the main aviation markets in the Gulf, accounting for close to 75% of the region’s total fleet size.

4 Analysis

4.1 Dubai International Airport

DXB is the largest airport in the United Arab Emirates and the busiest global airport with passenger traffic of approximately 90 million individuals annually. By the year 2023, it is anticipated that the airports traffic will have increased to 118 million, and the management is working towards increasing its facilities and improving services simultaneously (Shanker 1). In order to achieve this effectively, the airport has implemented a cost-effective digital technology strategy that has resulted in the establishment of a practical decision-making and information toolkit. This machine-assisted toolkit has helped the organization to effectively monitor its passengers’ journeys, identify potential mishaps along the way, and address them accordingly beforehand. The data is also analysed and collected periodically to streamline airport operations while improving overall passenger experience.

According to Towfiqi (21), the aeronautical side of an airport comprises the core activities which include personnel, security areas, facilitation, aircraft stands, and providing runways for airlines. The airport currently operates on three terminals (Terminals 1, 2, and 3), with four concourses between Terminals 1 and 3 while terminal 2 does not have a concourse. Terminals 1 and 3 currently accommodate 85% of the airport’s passenger traffic amounting to approximately 65 million passengers annually. It also has two parallel runways measuring 4000m by 60m, equipped with four instrument landing systems for facilitating safe landing in case of poor weather.

4.2 Doha International Airport

Doha International Airport, currently known as Hamad International Airport, is Qatar’s only international airport situated in the country’s capital of Doha. The government-owned airport was opened in 2014, and it occupies a space of 5,500 acres with the potential of further expansion in the future. According to Betchel (1), the airport’s capacity currently stands at approximately 35 million passengers annually and it is anticipated that this capacity would increase upon the completion of the expansion project. Within the Gulf region, the airport comes in second to Dubai International Airport in terms of passenger traffic. Its expansion is also expected to increase the number of aircraft movements to 320,000 along with a cargo load of two million tons annually. In terms of its contributions, the airport has been a major source of revenue for the government and has expanded Qatar’s global presence particularly in the aviation industry. The airport has one terminal with five concourses with a capacity of 34.5 million passengers annually. It also has two parallel runways measuring 4850m by 60m and 4250 by 60m.

4.3 Bahrain International Airport

The Bahrain International Airport is the country’s only international airport situated in Muharraq Island near Manama. The airport was established in 1927, and is the hub for Gulf Air. Currently, its capacity stands at 9.5 million passengers annually, although it is expected to increase upon the completion of its expansion. More recently, the government allocated $1.1 billion to the airport’s expansion as a measure towards increasing its global status and its passenger capacity, in addition to improving the efficiency of services being provided. While the airport’s global status and economic significance is relatively lower than those of Dubai International Airport and Doha International Airport, Bahrain International Airport has had a major role in improving the country’s international connectivity. It has also been instrumental in contributing to the relevance of the Gulf region as an aviation hub. The airport currently has two runways measuring 3964m by 60m and 2530m by 60m.

5 Discussion and Conclusions

5.1 Discussion

Generally, the three airports have evolved significantly over the years, an aspect that can be attributed to the support provided by their governments and collaboration across different aviation sectors. Dubai International Airport ranks first in is significance to the Middle Eastern aviation sector, followed by Doha International Airport, while Bahrain International Airport ranks third among these three. The study also shows that there is a need to improve the presence of Bahrain International Airport on a global scale, by focusing on its capacity, customer services, and professional operation. Nevertheless, these airports have played a major role in improving economy not only in their respective countries but also on a global scale. They have also helped in establishing connections between the Western and eastern worlds, ultimately strengthening their overall position. However, Dubai International Airport currently supersedes the other two particularly in terms of enhancing the tourism sector since many travellers tend to stop at Dubai in the course of their travels.

Based on an analysis of the three airports, it is evident that there are several factors contributing to ain airport’s success, and ultimately the profitability of the air transport industry particularly in the Gulf region. A major factor to consider is the government’s strategic decisions and how they impact the airport’s general operations. As noted, the three airports (Dubai International Airport, Doha International Airport, and Bahrain International Airport) are all public airports that are mainly operated by their respective governments. As such, the government’s decisions have a significant bearing on their operations. One factor that has contributed to the success of the Dubai International Airport in comparison to the other two is that the Dubai government has a clear comprehension of the impact that the airport has on the economy, and has made decisions to support its activities in the long term. The government has also established a positive relationship with the airport management to the extent that they can effectively understand the anticipated goals and ultimately develop common visions to oversee this success.

Another factor contributing to the success of airports in the Gulf region is general openness and transparency in their operations. Imamkulieva (59) notes that Dubai has established generally liberal policies as they relate to aviation, making it more accessible and efficient on a global platform. For example, the Dubai International Airport currently works with over 150 aviation companies, an aspect that has strengthened its profitability as it benefits from providing competitive charges for its services and infrastructure. Similarly, the Doha International Airport works with a large number of aviation companies across the globe to provide services to more than thirty million passengers annually. These airports also benefit from having fewer restrictions and increased freedoms for different airlines, making them among the top choice for both passengers and investors. It has also been noted that several airports across the GCC have also benefitted from the adoption of a consensus-based approach that has facilitated increased investments in air transportation to support overall economic growth.

5.2 Conclusions

To summarize, it is evident that the airport industry has a significant role to play in influencing a country’s economy and contributing to the global aviation industry. While the three airports have experienced a significant growth in capacity and global relevance, the Dubai International Airport has shown the most growth to the point of being the busiest international airport across the globe. Doha International Airport is considered a major competitor although it still has some way to go before effectively competing with Dubai. On the other hand, Bahrain International Airport still trails behind although the recent investment of $1.1 billion would effectively see to a capacity increase to 14 million passengers annually. To the populations, these airports have provided efficiency and high-quality customer service that ultimately translates to better economic contributions in their respective countries. In the World’s Air Transport System, these airports have been beneficial in enhancing the Gulf’s status as a global aviation hub by creating a central location that is easily accessible from different parts of the world.

6 List of References

Abdulla, A. E. (2019). Total Quality Management in the Airlines Services Industry: The Case of Bahrain Airport Services. Total Quality Management, 6(6).

Bakkar, Hazem, Asma Qassim AlHamad, and Lubna Abdelljawad. “A Graph Mining Study for GCC International Airports.”

Grosche, Tobias, Richard Klophaus, and Adam Seredyński. “Competition for long-haul connecting traffic among airports in Europe and the Middle East.” Journal of Air Transport Management 64 (2017): 3-14.

Imamkulieva, Elmira. “Development of air and sea transport in the GCC in the context of the transition to sustainable development.” 6 (2020): 57-64.

International Air Transport Association. “The Importance of Air Transport to United Arab Emirates” (2016): 2-7. Retrieved from: https://www.iata.org/en/iata-repository/publications/economic-reports/united-arab-emirates–value-of-aviation/

Piltz, Christopher, Augusto Voltes-Dorta, and Pere Suau-Sanchez. “A comparative analysis of hub connections of European and Asian airports against Middle Eastern hubs in intercontinental markets.” Journal of Air Transport Management 66 (2018): 1-12.

Towfiqi, Dheya A. Aziz. A model for airport strategic planning and master planning in the Arabian Gulf. Diss. Loughborough University, 2018.
Shanker, Tan. “The Sky’s the Limit: Predicting the Expansion of Commercial Aviation in Dubai.” (2020).

Will, Tim. “Is Dubai the city a new city should be? The Dubai International Financial Centre as an example for Free Zones within Dubai.” (2017).

Yun, Cai. “The Study of the Operational Characteristics of the Persian Gulf Airport Group and Its International Air Transport Market Effect.” (2019): 176.

Ziadah, Rafeef. “Transport Infrastructure and Logistics in the Making of Dubai Inc.” International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 42.2 (2018): 182-197.

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