Dubai: Fujairah International Airport (FIA) is positioning itself as the UAE's aircraft-dismantling centre as it invests hundreds of millions of dirhams in infrastructure development.
While the country's larger airports in Dubai and Abu Dhabi are hubs for passenger and cargo movements, the northern emirate airport has been gradually expanding its private charter or business jet revenues and is now looking into non-aeronautical business streams.
The airport is building long-term aircraft parking for up to 50 aircraft, with space for two to four aircraft dismantling, airport officials said during the Airport Show last week.
The dismantling work will be outsourced.
"We want to create different revenues for the airport. Now, we are trying to hit the non-aeronautical business," Khalid Al Mazroui, general manager of FIA, told Gulf News.
Last year, Boeing forecast that 6,000 aircraft would leave the worldwide fleet in the next 20 years.
The Seattle-based aircraft manufacturer is working with Aircraft Fleet Recycling Association (AFRA) members to recycle end-of-service aircraft and improvements on process to return high-value aeroplane materials back to manufacturing.
In 2008, AFRA members scrapped 30 per cent of the global scrapped fleet, recycled more than 181,436 tonnes of aluminium and 3,629 tonnes of speciality alloys, according to reports.
Meanwhile, European manufacturer Airbus affiliate Tarmac Aerosave has set up a dismantling plant in the south of France and offering short-term storage of aircraft.
The company already has taken apart six jetliners — an Airbus A300-B4, A340-600, two A310s, along with a pair of A320 wings, as well as one Fokker 100, and a McDonnell Douglas DC-9.
The site aims to recycle up to 85 per cent of the parts and materials from the out-of-service jetliners that are processed, the French manufacturer said.
Many private companies handing aircraft dismantling look for sites where old aircraft are stored and likely to be reaching the end of their life.
As FIA offers relatively lower storage charges, it plans to attract a higher number of aircraft for storage and dismantling.
"Hopefully, we will become the centre for this in the UAE," Al Mazroui said.
Meanwhile, FIA will see an investment of Dh70 million in infrastructure development projects even while it begins handing out contracts for additional expansion.
Projects underway
While the current runway is in "excellent" condition, as airport operations grow, the main runway will have to be re-serviced in about five years, Charles Hajdu, strategy and business development manager at FIA, said at the Airport Show.
The airport is building a parallel taxi runway, which it will use as the operational runway as it re-services the main runway.
Also under construction is the Europe Aviation Fujairah Maintenance Centre, which will serve Airbus and Boeing aircraft.
The size of the hangar will be able to accommodate four A320 or two A340 and will be ready early next year, Al Mazroui said.
French company Europe Aviation has invested $25 million (Dh91.8 million), and the airport will spend Dh70 million on the maintenance centre.
"Such MRO [overhaul workshops] will help Fujairah International Airport to accommodate additional Boeing and Airbus aircraft that will come for the purpose of maintenance," he said.
The airport is also working on bringing other maintenance companies to provide aircraft maintenance work, as well as storage of aircraft spare parts, by building many maintenance workshops.
These are to be ready by the last quarter of this year.
With increased airport operations in terms of aircraft movements, number of passengers and cargo, the airport is working on a new airline office building with 60 offices, training and conference rooms which will become available by mid 2011.
A General Aviation centre is under construction with phase one of private hangar to be complete by November, phase two comprising operations building, facilities for Aviation Academy and a second private hangar, is planned to be launched next month.
Phase three, which will bring additional maintenance and a display hangar for maintenance for small and business jet aircraft, is planned to follow.
Future projects
With the new ongoing construction development and potential business the airport has decided to build a substation for rescue and firefighting services, which will replace the existing RFFS tower.
The airport will be opening tender action for a new passenger terminal, a cargo terminal, cargo warehouse and doubling the size of the main apron.
"These are 2025 plans ... they might change around if business moves quickly. We might bring things forward," said Hajdu.
With the current speed of business, he said it is likely that the airport would finish the developments earlier than initially planned.
With more hangars, maintenance, MRO workshops, the airport intends to increase capacity for business jets and offer a lower cost for the country's aircraft servicing needs.
"We are aiming for a 10 per cent share of the UAE's business jets markets ... due to a large number of flights going in and out of the UAE," Al Mazroui said, "Fujairah will be very competitive."
While attracting business from neighbouring airports, the authority is also in talks with more companies to increase traffic from European destinations of Italy, Spain and Germany. "We compete with other airports in the UAE but we also coordinate with each other," he said.
Commercial plans
Later this year, the airport could see its first commercial flight, according to Khalid Al Mazroui, general manager of Fujairah International Airport.
FIA currently handles only chartered passengers, with an annual capacity of two million. Cargo makes up 90 per cent of the flights, of the total 60 flights per day.
"We are now negotiating with airlines to start operations from Fujairah International Airport," Al Mazroui said.
The airport saw a growth of 9 per cent in aircraft movements in the first few months of the year. "These are good numbers considering the recession," he said.
— N.S.
