Source: gulftoday.ae
DUBAI: Vice President, Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum has made an inspection tour to the new Emirates Airlines terminal at the Dubai International Airport on Saturday.
He was accompanied by Dubai Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Deputy Ruler Sheikh Maktoum Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Chairman of Dubai Civil Aviation and Chief Executive of Emirates Group Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum.
The Dhs12 billion new terminal, which is set to officially open in January 2013, will have an annual capacity of 19 million passengers.
Sheikh Mohammed began his tour in terminal 2 where he inspected the counters of the General Department of Residency and Foreigners Affairs. He directed employees there to deal with passengers nicely and kindly.
After that Sheikh Mohammed and the accompanying officials headed for the new terminal through the internal metro, which connects the old terminal with the new one at with a capacity of 6000 passengers per hour.
Entering the new terminal, Sheikh Mohammed inspected the arrival and departure lounges.
The new terminal is partially an underground structure and has five gates for remote stands, comprising the Automated People Mover for both arriving and departing and extends above the ground under a metal shell to accommodate 20 aircrafts; the lower and upper levels of the terminal 3 are connected by means of a special vertical transportation system (Sky Train).
At the luggage section, Sheikh Mohammed familiarised himself with the latest technology used in transporting and uploading luggage in addition to the vehicular and baggage handling system.
Before leaving, Sheikh Mohammed visited the terminal 2 arrivals section where he was briefed by Director General of the General Department of Residency and Foreigners Affairs Major General Mohammed Ahmed Al Marri on the latest in using e-gates system which has been introduced to speed up and simplify the immigration process at entry and exit points. In his presentation, Al Marri also touched on the smart gates for people with special needs. More info
