‘Gulf states witnessing growth in aviation sector’

Gulf states are witnessing major developments in the aviation industry, said Minister of Transportation and Telecommunications Kamal Ahmed as he addressed audience at the Arab Aviation and Media Summit 2015, launched yesterday.

“According to the new IATA 20-year air passenger forecast, the Middle East passenger traffic is expected to increase by just over 5pc per year. Global passenger numbers are forecast to increase to 6.6 billion in 2030 with the Middle East and Asia most likely to benefit from this growth,” he said.

Ahmed added that massive development witnessed in the Gulf is driven by demand. He cited passenger growth figures in Bahrain as its evidence. “In 2014, 8.1 million passengers travelled through Bahrain International Airport, approximately 9.9 per cent more than in 2013.  These numbers are being accommodated in an airport that was originally designed to handle only one million passengers annually,” he said.  

Theses numbers are estimated to substantially rise once our new Airport Modernization Programme is implemented, he stated. 

“To meet the projected growth figures, airports across the region are being expanded with large-scale infrastructure development projects underway. Bahrain is no exception, and we are in full speed with our largest airport expansion ever,” he added. 

Speaking about the Airport Modernization Programme of Bahrain, he said that a groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled to be held early next year. 

“This programme will see an expansion of the passenger terminal building at the Bahrain International Airport, aimed to increase capacity to 14m passengers annually. This is expected to meet our requirements for the next 15-20 years,” Ahmed said. 

He said on-the-ground activity has already kicked off, with enabling works currently taking place to relocate all existing utilities and facilities away from the footprint of the existing passenger terminal. 

The Minister also spoke about Gulf Air. “Gulf Air has been undergoing changes in recent years, which has already resulted in vast financial improvements,” he said.