Dubai International, the world's second busiest airport, will feature in a National Geographic documentary that could be seen by up to half a billion people.
Ultimate Airport Dubai, a 10-part series, launches on National Geographic's global channel tonight and will air in about 160 countries.
The show is the brainchild of John Smithson, the creative director of Arrow Media, a production company that has already made a number of programmes in Dubai as part of the Megastructures series on National Geographic.
"What happened was a couple of times in the last three or four years I was flying as a regular passenger in transit in Dubai and the usual thing, changing planes … and I thought this is just incredibly busy with people from all over the world," he said.
"National Geographic channel international was talking about [doing] a programme that would be effortlessly international and I thought Dubai would be brilliant for that.
"People who work here are from the UAE and from all over the world and the people who fly here and are in transit here are literally from all over the world."
Mr Smithson approached Dubai Airports in January last year and filming started the following August, wrapping up in the new year.
The episodes focus on the airport's day to day operations, such as runway and airplane maintenance as well as traffic management and the building and trialling of Concourse A, which opened this year.
Emirates Airline, Dnata, Dubai Duty Free and Dubai Customs were all involved.
"It's a very honest portrayal at what happens every day and what does come out is that even in situations that are difficult it's the passion and the commitment of the people who have to resolve the issues that really shines through," said Lorne Riley, the head of corporate communications at Dubai Airports.
"We don't claim to be perfect or flawless. What we do profess to have is an ongoing commitment to be the best that we can be," he added.
During filming, three to four crews shot on site every day for a period of five months, recording about 400 hours of footage.
gduncan@thenational.ae
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Yemen's Bahais and the charges they often face
The Baha'i faith was made known in Yemen in the 19th century, first introduced by an Iranian man named Ali Muhammad Al Shirazi, considered the Herald of the Baha'i faith in 1844.
The Baha'i faith has had a growing number of followers in recent years despite persecution in Yemen and Iran.
Today, some 2,000 Baha'is reside in Yemen, according to Insaf.
"The 24 defendants represented by the House of Justice, which has intelligence outfits from the uS and the UK working to carry out an espionage scheme in Yemen under the guise of religion.. aimed to impant and found the Bahai sect on Yemeni soil by bringing foreign Bahais from abroad and homing them in Yemen," the charge sheet said.
Baha'Ullah, the founder of the Bahai faith, was exiled by the Ottoman Empire in 1868 from Iran to what is now Israel. Now, the Bahai faith's highest governing body, known as the Universal House of Justice, is based in the Israeli city of Haifa, which the Bahais turn towards during prayer.
The Houthis cite this as collective "evidence" of Bahai "links" to Israel - which the Houthis consider their enemy.
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End of free parking
- paid-for parking will be rolled across Abu Dhabi island on August 18
- drivers will have three working weeks leeway before fines are issued
- areas that are currently free to park - around Sheikh Zayed Bridge, Maqta Bridge, Mussaffah Bridge and the Corniche - will now require a ticket
- villa residents will need a permit to park outside their home. One vehicle is Dh800 and a second is Dh1,200.
- The penalty for failing to pay for a ticket after 10 minutes will be Dh200
- Parking on a patch of sand will incur a fine of Dh300
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Copa del Rey
Semi-final, first leg
Barcelona 1 (Malcom 57')
Real Madrid (Vazquez 6')
Second leg, February 27
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Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Cargoz%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDate%20started%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20January%202022%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Premlal%20Pullisserry%20and%20Lijo%20Antony%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2030%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Seed%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
