Al Maktoum Airport: the $35 billion expansion at the city's southern edge

Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC), in Dubai's south, is undergoing one of the largest aviation projects ever attempted.

• Approval: April 2024.
• Investment: ~AED 128 billion (~US$35 billion).
• Target: the world's largest airport, with up to 260 million annual passengers, by ~2032.

For residents in the southern half of the city, the airport is both a draw (proximity, easy travel) and a long-term value driver — market analysts have flagged meaningful price appreciation in adjacent communities as the expansion progresses.

Open questions worth tracking: noise mitigation plans, road network upgrades, timing of any direct metro link to DWC, and how Dubai International (DXB) eventually winds down passenger operations.

Sources: The National.