{"id":33701,"date":"2025-10-06T06:47:48","date_gmt":"2025-10-06T06:47:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/?p=33701"},"modified":"2025-10-06T06:47:50","modified_gmt":"2025-10-06T06:47:50","slug":"look-rare-photos-of-how-dubais-dxb-grew-from-sandy-runway-to-worlds-busiest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/fr\/2025\/10\/06\/look-rare-photos-of-how-dubais-dxb-grew-from-sandy-runway-to-worlds-busiest\/","title":{"rendered":"Look: Rare photos of how Dubai’s DXB grew from sandy runway to world\u2019s busiest"},"content":{"rendered":"

DXB continues to be the world\u2019s number one airport for international travel, and following its busiest first half on record, it is expected to welcome 100 million guests in 2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A view of Dubai Airport and its runway in 1960’s (L) and present day DXB (R)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dubai International (DXB) Airport has consistently maintained, for the past decade, its distinction as the world\u2019s busiest airport in terms of international passenger traffic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, in the first half of this year, 46 million guests have passed through its doors\u2013a testament to DXB\u2019s busy schedule as it also recently celebrated its landmark 65th anniversary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But DXB has humble beginnings. Did you know that on September 30, 1960, the airport opened with only a small sand-compacted runway? There was also an equally small terminal building, and the runway was only capable of handling aircraft up to the size of a DC-3, a small propeller-driven aircraft from the 1930s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels.thumbnail_17. 2005 – Arrival counter at Dubai Airport.\u2014KT FILE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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View of Dubai Airport in 1960’s. Photo: WAM<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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View of Dubai Airport and its runway in 1960’s. Photo: WAM<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1960 – Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed al Maktoum at Dubai Internation Airport DIAC<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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MEA 1960s<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1965 – View of Dubai Airport. Photo: File<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo: DXB<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1970’S view of ATC<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1970 – DXB Airside. Photo: File<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1970’s view of DXB Lounge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1980’s Interior of Dubai Airport<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1983 – View of Duty Free shopping area. Photo: KT FILE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1985 – Launch of Emirates Airlines. Photo: KT FILE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1985 – Car park area at Dubai Airport. Photo: KT FILE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1986 – Rent a car counter at the arrival lounge of Dubai Airport<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1997 – New concourse holding lounge at Dubai Intl. Airport. Photo: KT file<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2001 – View of Dubai Airport expansion site. Photo: KT FILE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2004 – Dubai Airport construction site. Photo: KT FILE<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2005 – Arrival counter at Dubai Airport. Photo: KT FILE. Photo: NAIR<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2008 – Passengers rush at the arrival lounge. Photo: KT file<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2016 – General view of Dubai International Airport. Photo: WAM\/File<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2022 – ‘Their Patio\u2019, a premium lounge at Dubai Terminal 3. Photo: KT File<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It wasn\u2019t until five years later that DXB would be upgraded to get its first asphalt runway, enabling it to accommodate nine airlines, flying to 20 destinations by the end of the 1960s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the 1970s, the runway was lengthened, and a new three-storey terminal building was built along with a new control tower.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ghaith Al Ghaith, CEO of flydubai, shared how DXB looked in the 1970s when the small runway got a much-needed upgrade. He recalled: \u201cI remember the day DXB\u2019s asphalt runway became a reality, and it felt like the start of something special. From that day, the airport was on its journey to becoming a global hub for aviation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He added that Dubai\u2019s growth was evident between 1980 and 2010. \u201cThat era really established Dubai on the world\u2019s stage, and it was led by the prosperity of the air transport sector.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beginning of transformation<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the early 1980s, DXB\u2019s true transformation began to unfold. Dubai Duty Free (DDF) opened with an annual turnover of $20 million in its first year. It was a sign of things to come manifested by DXB\u2019s completion of a second state-of-the-art runway that opened in April 1984, in time for the launch of Emirates a little over a year later. At the end of the decade, passenger traffic was up to 4.3 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Colonel Ibrahim Hamad, director of passport control-Terminal 3, General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) Airport Sector, has witnessed and participated in the airport\u2019s success, having worked closely with DXB for 38 years. He told Khaleej Times: \u201cIn the early years, we waited for guests to arrive, and their numbers were so limited that we could see them all and deal with them individually.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNow we have smart systems and biometric technology,\u201d he added, \u201cit\u2019s been incredibly rewarding to see the transformation. After all these years, I look at DXB\u2019s journey with pride, and I am so proud to have been part of the success story.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Massive growth<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By 1998, passenger traffic was up to around 9.7 million with the opening of Terminal 2, and at the turn of the new millennium a new chapter began with the opening of Concourse 1 (now Concourse C) built as part of the first phase of the general expansion project at a cost of $554 milion, thus increasing DXB\u2019s capacity from 10 million passengers per year to 23 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nine years later, in 2007, the Department of Civil Aviation was restructured resulting in the formation of Dubai Airports, the operator of Dubai\u2019s airports, alongside the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, the local aviation regulatory body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The following year, in 2008, DXB hit yet another milestone in its history with the opening of DXB Terminal 3 and Concourse B, for the exclusive use of Emirates, taking DXB\u2019s annual passenger capacity to 60 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By 2009, DXB was already the world\u2019s fastest-growing airport, thanks to traffic surpassing 40 million people. In the same year, work began on Concourse A and Terminal 2, along with the launch of flydubai, Dubai\u2019s second carrier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

World\u2019s number one<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was in 2014 that DXB became the world\u2019s number one airport for international passenger traffic by welcoming 70.4 million guests. Four years later, in 2018, the one billionth international traveller was welcomed into DXB as growth seemed unstoppable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the Covid pandemic came. In March 2020, operations were partially suspended by UAE authorities as Dubai looked to combat the global spread of the deadly virus. Special repatriation and cargo flights, however, continued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DXB also showed its resilience. After a brief closure, it was one of the first major hubs globally to reopen on July 7, 2020. Recovery was fast as DXB soared and maintained its position as the busiest international airport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From sands to skies<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On its 65th anniversary, DXB continues to be the world\u2019s number one airport for international travel, and following its busiest first half on record, DXB is expected to welcome 100 million guests in 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hassan Al Joker, head of the inspection team at Dubai Customs, who has been part of the DXB community for more than 20 years, summarises the success of DXB: \u201cWe have a unified vision to provide an exceptional experience for travellers despite the volume and complexity of daily operations. We have a committed and collaborative team that constantly strives for innovation and service improvement, ensuring that operations run efficiently and smoothly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From Dubai\u2019s sand dunes to the skies, employees like Hassan look forward to DXB reaching greater heights as they operate as one DXB anchored on \u2018Many Hearts, One Beat\u2019 spirit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2020’s – a panoramic view of Dubai International Airport. Photo: WAM file<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Source: Khaleej Times<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Published: 5 October 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

DXB continues to be the world\u2019s number one airport for international travel, and following its busiest first half on record, it is expected to welcome 100 million guests in 2026 A view of Dubai Airport and its runway in 1960’s (L) and present day DXB (R) Dubai International (DXB) Airport has consistently maintained, for the […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":33702,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[3425,3229,1831,4920,4919],"class_list":["post-33701","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-aviation-growth","tag-dubai-development","tag-dubai-international-airport","tag-dxb-history","tag-worlds-busiest-airport"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33701","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33701"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33701\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33725,"href":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33701\/revisions\/33725"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33702"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33701"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33701"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elite-bricks.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33701"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}