Smooth take-off for Dubai's Terminal 3

DUBAI // An Emirates flight to Doha marked the start of business at Dubai International Airport's new Terminal 3 (T3) yesterday. Flight EK843, which took off at 2.15pm, was the first flight to carry passengers from the plush new US$4.5 billion (Dh16.5bn) structure - the largest airport terminal building in the world. With only six departure flights and nine arrivals at T3 on day one, the 1.5 million sq m glass and chrome building - boasting lofty ceilings, skylights and sparkling white pillars - was hardly bustling. For most of the day the marble floors of the enormous departure and arrival areas echoed only with the periodic footsteps of staff, as they geared themselves up to deal with the first influx of passengers. At times the building felt abandoned, so quiet one could have heard a pin drop. Shops, cafes and walkways were empty, while most baggage carousels and escalators were motionless. The first plane to touch down was Flight EK2926 from Jeddah, which arrived half an hour ahead of its scheduled 3.55pm landing. Kareem Derbas, 30, the chief executive of a development company, was returning home from a business trip aboard the landmark flight. He said: "Everything was perfect - I wish it was always like this. It seemed a much shorter walk from the gate to the passport control area than at Terminal 1, and there was no queue. That may be because it's the first day. "Sometimes at the other terminals, the baggage takes a while to come through, but there was nothing like that today. It's a pretty amazing building, with a lot of light and an impressive water feature." Shaker Hassan, who lives in Jeddah, flew into Dubai on business aboard the same flight. He was impressed by the sheer scale of T3, and the speed with which he came through passport control and the baggage reclaim area. "It was a very smooth experience on arrival," he said. "I like the terminal - it's very fresh, big and functional." Anwar Malik, 45, who lives in Sharjah, had just dropped a friend at Terminal 1 and decided to have a look at the new T3 building. "I think it's brilliant - huge and very impressive," he said. "It feels new and clean and is certainly a very good-looking terminal. I think it's great for Dubai and should mean passengers having to face shorter waiting times." Fatima Rahyab, 23, a credit analyst, was waiting for a 2am flight to New York on a stopover from Kabul. She said: "It's very modern and state-of-the-art, but it feels a little bit sterile to me compared to other airport terminals. I think maybe it needs more plant life." The tranquillity of T3 yesterday will almost certainly be short-lived, as the number of flights and passenger footfall gradually increases. The terminal is opening in phases and will eventually handle 17,000 passengers at any given time. Emirates airline said it will move its entire daily schedule of 250 flights over to the new terminal by December. With the new T3 and Concourse 2, the airport will be able to handle 60 million passengers annually, a target it is projected to reach within three years. T3 has placed Dubai in the record books once more, taking over from Beijing's third terminal - which was built for the summer Olympics - as the world's largest airport terminal building. The new first and business class concourse features two lounges and 2,000 seats. It is bigger than many other airports in the Middle East. There are 10,000 sq m of shops selling gold, watches and jewellery. The airport has removed the initial screening stage from the security process to speed up the flow of expected passengers. Muhammed Asheer, a member of the Department of Civil Aviation operations support team, said yesterday: "Everything is going smoothly so far, and I foresee that continuing. This is far better than the other terminals, and it will make life easier for passengers. "They will face fewer delays, I believe, because there are more counters for them in departures and arrivals." arichardson@thenational.ae