Dubai aims to be one of the world's most important air hubs

Officials at Dubai International Airport (DIA) are expecting an annual total of 60m passengers per year by 2010, and the airport is looking to the addition of a third terminal and two extra concourses to reach 70m passengers per year capacity

Some 28.6m people passed through the airport in 2006, but the Dubai government is not content with what it sees as modest figures.

DIA is being adjusted to handle the new Airbus A380 and Emirates, Dubai's flagship airline, which has 47 of the aircraft on order - it is the single largest customer for the world's largest airliner - will in a few years time be a likely candidate as the world's largest airline.

An assessment of the emirate's aviation policies is given by Sir Richard Branson, Chairman of Virgin Group, who told The Report, due out at the end of October: "Like other airlines, the open-skies policy from the UAE is key to our operation.

"It has been instrumental in encouraging rapid development in Dubai and can bring real benefits to consumers in the UAE by offering a wide choice of carriers to fly with and value for money with competitive fares."

He confirmed: "Dubai is now the second busiest long-haul route out of London Heathrow."

"The route is attractive for both business and leisure passengers, which forms a key part of our future business strategy.

"We are pleased with the performance on the route since it started in March 2006. With a daily service, we flew over 135,000 passengers in our first year.

"We are also appointing passenger sales agents in Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait, and we already have a general sales agent in Oman."

He added: "Whenever we add new destinations, we like to look for opportunities for other Virgin companies.

"Virgin Atlantic has proven to be a great platform for further investment in the past - South Africa being a perfect example of this - and I'm sure this will be the case in Dubai in the future.

"We are currently reviewing a range of opportunities across all sectors.

"I have visited Dubai many times in recent years, and I've been so impressed with its commitment and innovative approach to further developments.

"I have always considered that Dubai and Virgin Atlantic are very similar in their outlook - both looking to anticipate the future and prepare for it but also always looking at new and exciting ways of doing things."