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Dubai, United Arab Emirates – 4 January 2021: Dubai Airports, operator of Dubai International (DXB) and Dubai World Central (DWC), and GMR Hyderabad (GMR-HYD) have joined forces to create a Covid-19 vaccine distribution corridor.

Home to 88 global airlines including Dubai’s flagship carrier Emirates, and 12 international and 400 local and regional freight forwarders, Dubai Airports with its interlinked cargo facilities at DXB and DWC and in partnership with dnata cargo, the airport service provider in Dubai, the HYD-DXB vaccine corridor will provide capacity to seamlessly handle up to 300 tonnes of vaccines per day.

The announcement follows the formalisation of an agreement recently after months of preparations by the two entities to design and create a seamless end-to-end logistics solution. The HYD-DXB vaccine corridor connects major vaccine manufacturers in India with markets around the world via Dubai’s state-of-the-art cargo hub.

“A major surge in demand for the efficient, safe and reliable global distribution of high volumes of Covid-19 vaccines is expected in the coming months and as the world’s preeminent hub of choice, we wanted to be ready to respond to and accommodate that demand. Our partnership with GMR-Hyderabad is timed perfectly just as the global race to develop the vaccines enters the final stage. This corridor is the result of our proactive strategy to be ready with innovative, collaborative and agile shipping solutions for the industry,” said Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports.

SGK Kishore, Executive Director – South & Chief Innovation Officer, GMR Airports, said, “As the world embarks on an unprecedented vaccination drive to combat COVID-19, our collaboration with Dubai Airports in the form of an exclusive vaccine air freight corridor - HYDXB-VAXCOR will play a key role in enabling seamless, safe and efficient shipment of Covid-19 vaccines to and from Hyderabad, the pharma capital of South Asia.”

“We are excited to join forces with Dubai and Hyderabad Airports to ensure safe and efficient transportation of the COVID-19 vaccine across the region and beyond. Over the past few years, we’ve significantly invested in state-of-the-art facilities and the latest technologies to enhance our pharma handling capabilities. Our advanced infrastructure enables us to deliver the highest level of service and safety for our partners and their customers in this unique project,” said Gary Chapman, President of dnata.

“Emirates SkyCargo is delighted to support the vaccine distribution corridor initiative between Dubai and Hyderabad Airports which will greatly facilitate the rapid and secure transportation of COVID-19 vaccines from Hyderabad to Dubai and beyond. Hyderabad is an important station for us in terms of pharma transportation and is part of our international Pharma Corridors initiative for enhanced cool chain protection for pharmaceuticals. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we have continued to transport important volumes of temperature-sensitive pharmaceutical cargo from Hyderabad and the region. Emirates SkyCargo provides robust flight connectivity to Hyderabad with more than 10 weekly flights on our widebody Boeing 777 aircraft. Together with our charter capability, we are well positioned to transport the COVID-19 vaccines from Hyderabad to our hub in Dubai where we have extensive EU GDP certified infrastructure for pharma, including a dedicated airside hub to store and distribute COVID-19 vaccines before transporting them onwards to the rest of the world including emerging markets,” said Nabil Sultan, Emirates Divisional Senior Vice President, Cargo.

Dubai Airports and GMR-Hyderabad offer a great combination of opportunity and solution. Hyderabad is the world’s emerging vaccine capital with five major vaccine producers in its vicinity, while Dubai, with its advanced aviation and logistics infrastructure, geocentric location and superior global network, is perfectly positioned as the gateway and distribution hub to efficiently deliver the vaccines to hundreds of cities across Europe, Africa, the Americas and the Middle East.

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B Roll Footage of the Dubai Vaccine Centre at DXB: https://dubaiairports.box.com/s/hv0ogjpjynj7x4a530w2yvyk5q5yudp9  

Dubai, United Arab Emirates – 31 December 2020: Dubai Airports is gearing up for an upsurge in the number of passengers expected to pass through Dubai International (DXB) over the next few days. From January 1-7 an estimated 545,000 passengers are expected to use DXB, with January 2^nd and 3^rd being the busiest days of the week with more than 78,000 departing passengers.

Considering that travel requirements have changed globally over recent weeks and months due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Dubai Airports strongly urges all customers to:

• Always check with their airline for information on travel requirements specific to their journey
• Confirm the terminal their flight is arriving into/departing from before coming to the airport
• Make sure they are aware of and meet the travel requirements of the country they are travelling to (including a negative PCR test report before the start of their journey)
• Ensure they wear a protective face mask and maintain physical distancing at the airport at all times
• Abstain from travelling and seek medical advice if they are experiencing any Covid-19 symptoms
• Ensure that their travel documents (passport and Visa) are updated and valid before heading to the airport
• Say their goodbyes at home to help avoid crowding at the terminal forecourt. Entry is limited to ticketed passengers only and well-wishers will not be permitted to enter the terminals.

Meanwhile, Dubai Airports is working closely with its service and commercial partners including 50 plus international carriers, some 90 food and beverage and retail concessionaires, and control and health authorities, to ensure the well-being and comfort of the customers. Dubai Airports has implemented a series of precautionary measures throughout the airport to maintain the health and safety of customers and staff. These measures include hand sanitiser stations around the airport, protective plexiglass at check-in and immigration counters, thermal and temperature screening, social distancing markers and increased levels of cleaning and sanitisation in compliance with international standards as set out by relevant local authorities.

DUBAI, UAE – 01 October 2020 – Dubai Airports today marked the 60th anniversary of the official opening of Dubai International (DXB). The occasion celebrates a remarkable success story driven by Dubai Airports’ ‘future forward’ thinking that has seen DXB emerge as the world’s leading airport. Since opening on 30 September 1960, DXB has served 1.115 billion passengers travelling on more than 7.47 million flights connecting over 240 destinations in 95 countries across the globe.

HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman, Dubai Airports said: “From the outset, DXB has been a catalyst for growth. Dubai International was born from the vision of the late HH Sheikh Rashid Bin Saeed Al Maktoum who understood the vast potential of aviation and had the foresight to build the airport and promote an Open Skies policy. That vision was carried forward strongly by HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, who effectively positioned Dubai as a global aviation leader. DXB, which is at the centre of Dubai’s proud aviation history, is testimony to the fact that great things can be achieved through vision, forward-thinking, innovation, collaboration and hard work. Over the next half a century, we will continue to strengthen our role in connecting the world and supporting the social and economic development of Dubai.”

60 years of achievement

DXB’s history is replete with examples of forward thinking and aviation firsts. It was the first airport in the Middle East to feature a gated terminal, along with the largest Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower when Sheikh Rashid terminal opened in 2000, and the first to launch e-gates in 2002. In 2008, it opened the largest airport terminal in the world (Terminal 3) and three years later the world’s first concourse purpose-built for the A380 (Concourse A). It is home to the world’s leading international airline and duty-free retail operation. DXB became the world’s busiest international airport in 2014 and welcomed its billionth passenger in December 2018.

Preparing for the next 50 years

In line with the vision and strategy of UAE’s leaders, Dubai Airports is not resting on its laurels and is focused on furthering its progress in the next 50 years and beyond.

“Each year brings new challenges and opportunities,” said Paul Griffiths, CEO, Dubai Airports. “Today we are working our way through a crisis and our recovery is well underway. DXB now serves 51% of the destinations, in 77% of the countries, and 58% of the airlines it did pre-COVID-19. We continue to advocate for standard protocols around the world that are key to safeguarding passengers’ wellbeing and accelerating the recovery of international travel. The development of a rapid COVID-19 test on departure is one such solution.

“While we are fully focused on managing our today, we have strongly set our sights on consolidating our leadership in the future. We are constantly exploring new approaches and technologies that can help us offer even more seamless, secure and rewarding travel experiences,” added Griffiths.

Dubai Airports is actively pursuing a number of initiatives to restore consumer confidence and enhance the travel experience, including airport interior design innovations, the use of single ID biometrics to facilitate contact-less travel and an e-commerce platform that will bring added choice and convenience to travellers.

“We will continue to work with the sector to boost consumer confidence and raise DXB’s capacity as traffic grows,” continued Griffiths. “While we can’t predict how long it will take for the industry to fully recover, I am optimistic that when the world will open up, the desire to travel will be stronger than ever.  Dubai Airports and the entire aviation community here will be ready, just as we have been in the past 60 years.”