Middle East Business

Dubai World Central's second runway is due by the end of 2027 as earthworks and piling advance towards a 150 million passenger first phase

By Staff Writer  |  11 September 2026

Dubai Airports says construction at Al Maktoum International Airport is on schedule, with the second runway opening by the end of 2027 and the first phase, sized for 150 million passengers, due in the early 2030s. Its Chief Executive Officer expects flydubai to be the first airline to move, with five or six aircraft shifting from Dubai International as early as next year.

Dubai World Central's second runway is expected to open by the end of 2027, Paul Griffiths, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Airports, told an international media briefing hosted by the Dubai Media Office on 10 September 2026. He said construction across the Al Maktoum International Airport site remained on schedule, with substantial earthworks and piling already taking place, and that the first phase of the expanded airport would provide capacity for 150 million passengers in the early 2030s.

The opening of the second runway will be the next major milestone for DWC.

Paul Griffiths, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Airports

The completed airport is planned to have five runways and capacity for up to 260 million passengers a year. Mr Griffiths said only two runways would be needed for the first 150 million passenger phase. The third and fourth would be added as terminal capacity grows, and the fifth would serve as a standby so that four remain in regular use when one is taken out of service.

How the capacity is added

The wider plan includes up to eight passenger processing nodes, each providing capacity for around 31 million to 32 million passengers. Mr Griffiths said those nodes could be added ahead of demand, giving the airport room to expand through the second half of the century. The initial development is sized for 150 million passengers, with further sections added as traffic grows.

Dubai World Central is intended to take the additional capacity Dubai needs once Dubai International reaches its operating limit. Mr Griffiths said that limit was approaching within the next few years and that both Emirates and flydubai would need the room the new airport provides.

The whole idea is really the capacity of DXB will be exhausted pretty much over the next few years, and to give Emirates and flydubai the room to grow, they're going to need to use that additional capacity at DWC.

Paul Griffiths, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Airports

Who moves first, and when

No airline move from Dubai International to Dubai World Central has been confirmed. Mr Griffiths said flydubai would probably be the first to shift part of its operation, with an initial move that could involve five or six aircraft next year. Slots freed at Dubai International would then allow further growth there.

The first mover actually will probably be flydubai. That will move part of their operation to the new airport over the next few years, probably starting next year.

Paul Griffiths, Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Airports

The broader transition is planned in stages over several months rather than at once. Mr Griffiths compared the eventual move with Hong Kong's transfer of its airport in the late 1990s, when an airport handling about 20 million passengers shifted operations to a new site in 24 hours, and said Dubai's move would take longer because the volumes involved are far larger. The full transfer of Dubai International's operations is planned once the first 150 million passenger phase at Dubai World Central is available. He also described how the passenger journey at the new airport might be designed, but those elements were presented as ambitions rather than confirmed operating procedures.

Dubai Airports did not give a construction cost for the second runway, the names of the contractors on the earthworks and piling packages, or a date for the first node to open. One report gives the second runway as opening by the end of 2027 and the other as operational next year; both are consistent with a 2027 opening and no month is stated here.