Page 264 - Aamir Rehman - Dubai & Co Global Strategies for Doing Business in the Gulf States-McGraw-Hill (2007)

246 Dubai & Co.

A340-500—which will enable direct flights from Abu Dhabi to vir-
tually any inhabited area in the world. Etihad also has options to
buy 12 additional aircraft, bringing the total value of the deal to
6
over $7 billion. Insiders report that the very creation of Etihad
Airways represents Abu Dhabi’s aspiration to assert its leadership
in the UAE and demonstrate its ability to outshine its “junior” emi-
rate Dubai. The increase in airline and airport capacity in the UAE,
assuming all expansion plans proceed as envisioned, could have
far-reaching implications for pricing and consumer choice. There is
also speculation that such substantial capacity would lead to bar-
gain-priced agreements that would entice global carriers to use the
UAE even more as a layover stop for long-haul flights. Abu Dhabi
and Dubai are, after all, only 90 minutes apart by road, and having
both airports act as major hubs should require a large increase in
flight volume.

Travel Tip: Abu Dhabi Airport and the Three-Minute Rule
As Dubai’s role as a major business and tourist destination has
increased, the volume of passengers stretches the capacity of even
the cavernous Dubai International Airport. The main terminal,
which includes retail outlets, 24-hour duty-free shopping, a round-
the-clock food court, an airport hotel, and numerous airline
lounges, is not always easy to navigate. The walk from the gate to
the immigration and arrival hall can be substantial, and lines at
passport-control stations (especially for passengers traveling coach
without access to the fast-track premium lanes) can be lengthy. All
in all, one needs to budget about an hour for the arrival process:
from landing to exiting the airport.
Arriving at Abu Dhabi, however, is a very different experience.
Like Dubai, there is no paperwork to complete and US and EU pass-
port holders simply have their passports stamped on arrival. But
unlike Dubai, travel time from gate to passport control (in the pres-
ent, preexpansion terminal) is minimal. A colleague with whom
I traveled frequently from the United States to Abu Dhabi once
timed the process from airplane door to airport sidewalk (assuming
no bags to claim and nothing to declare at customs) to be a mere
three minutes. In those three minutes, passengers at the front of the
plane could complete the entire landing and immigration process.