Dubai plans underground fuel tanks for new airport expansion

Dubai is planning to install underground fuel tanks and reinforce other critical infrastructure at its new airport expansion to protect against potential drone or missile attacks. Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports, stated in an interview with the Financial Times that certain parts of the infrastructure may need to be strengthened to become more resilient against future actions.

The multi-billion dollar project aims to create an airport capable of serving 250 million passengers annually. Despite regional tensions involving Iran, the US, and Israel, Griffiths confirmed that the long-term strategy remains unchanged. This shift toward underground storage follows previous incidents where surface-level fuel tanks at Dubai's central airport were targeted, forcing operational disruptions.

While Dubai's airport was once the world's largest, it fell out of the global top five in the first half of this year due to airspace instability caused by regional conflicts.