UAE's private air travel industry to end 2024 on a high note amid influx of millionaires

The UAE's private air travel industry is expected to end the year strong, lifted by an influx of high net-worth individuals, strong economic growth, new companies establishing operations and developed airport infrastructure.

Business jet movements at Dubai World Central – Al Maktoum International Airport are expected to reach more than 18,000 in 2024, compared to 16,657 last year, according to the latest forecast by the Middle East and North Africa Business Aviation Association (Mebaa).

The UAE's share of the Middle East and North Africa's business aviation market has reached between 40 to 45 per cent this year, up from a share of 30 to 35 per cent in 2023, Mebaa said.

The Mena business aviation market has grown in 2024 about seven per cent year-on-year in terms of traffic, number of flight movements and number of registered aircraft, according to the association.

"We have not only come to the level of 2019, but we have exceeded it by almost 30 per cent, so the growth is very obvious," said Ali Ahmed Al Naqbi, founder and executive chairman of Mebaa.

"Everybody knows that real business happens in Middle East and North Africa, despite all of what is happening around us."

While aircraft registration is a "very complex activity", Mebaa is working closely with the authorities to increase the number of aircraft registered in the UAE, as a major business aviation hub, he added.

He was speaking in the lead up to the 10th Middle East and North Africa Business Aviation Association Show, which will be held from December 10 to 12.

This year's event will feature a new Advanced Air Mobility Pavilion with US-based air taxi developer Joby Aviation and Germany's Lilium putting mock-ups on display, according to Tim Hawes, managing director of Informa Markets, which organises the event with Mebaa.

Air taxis will be "complementary to business aviation", where these electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft (eVTOLs) will make travel easier by carrying passengers arriving to Dubai on business jets to their hotels or business appointments in a "seamless way" that avoids traffic delays, Mr Al Naqbi said.

Other new features at the Mebaa show include a start-up pavilion and a "NextGen programme" that aims to bring more than 500 students to the show to give them insights into various aspects of the industry to help inspire a new generation of talent.

The 2024 show is expect to have more than 145 exhibitors, including 64 new ones, and host more than 10,000 visitors from 95 countries, the organisers said.

That marks a 43 per cent increase in the number of countries coming to the show, with a big uptake from companies based in the US, Asia and Europe, which see the Middle East as a "valuable place to do business," Mr Hawes said.

Static displays of 25 aircraft will be on the tarmac from major manufacturers including Airbus ACJ, Boeing Business Jets, Bombardier, Dassault Aviation, Embraer, Textron, RoyalJet, Qatar Executive, Vista, Falcon and others.

"We are expecting a lot of deals to be signed at the show and it will be announced publicly, Mr Al Naqbi said.

The UAE is leading the region's business aviation sector amid an influx of wealthy individuals. The Mena region has attracted the most billionaire wealth globally since Covid-19 as the super-rich move to countries that offer premium health care, education, safety and ease of doing business, according to a report by Swiss banking group UBS.

UAE billionaires’ aggregate wealth rose by 39.5 per cent annually to $138.7 billion this year, with the number of billionaires growing by one to 18, UBS’s Billionaire Ambitions report found.

The UAE has established itself as the leading destination for high-net worth individuals globally this year, attracting more than 6,700 millionaires, according to British investment migration consultancy Henley & Partners.

The country’s tax-free environment, quality of life and robust financial infrastructure are major draws. Dubai was ranked 14th on Euromonitor's Top 100 City Destinations Index in 2024, according to the report released on December 5.

It was also ranked fifth among the Top 10 Cities for Tourism Performance in 2024.

"Dubai remains the leading city in terms of international demand in 2024. The city benefits from a growing number of arrivals from Asia Pacific and further recovery of high-spending Chinese tourists," Euromonitor said. "The upgraded more flexible visa-on-arrival rules that now include such major source destinations as India have become another important growth factor."

The emirate also ranked seventh in the Top 10 Cities in International Arrivals in 2024, according to the report.

The UAE Central Bank in September said it expects the country's economy to expand by 4 per cent this year, an increase from its June estimate of 3.9 per cent, on the back of a boost from its non-oil sector as the Emirates moves forward with its diversification strategy.

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