Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Consortium Wins Contract for 31-Mile Airport People Mover in Dubai, UAE

en.Wedoany.com Reported - Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) announced on August 20 that it has been awarded the contract to deliver an Automated People Mover (APM) system for Dubai's Al Maktoum International Airport, leading the construction of a roughly 31-mile-long transit line with nine stations. The system is scheduled for completion in December 2031 and will deploy 165 automated vehicles, which MHI says will make it the world's largest airport APM once completed.

The contract was awarded by Dubai Aviation City Corp. to a consortium comprising MHI, its Dubai subsidiary MHI Mobility Engineering Services, and Mumbai-based Larsen & Toubro (L&T). MHI and its subsidiary are responsible for the design, procurement, and testing of the vehicles and signaling systems, as well as overall system integration; L&T is responsible for the design, procurement, testing, and on-site construction of other subsystems. The contract value was not disclosed.

The APM is part of Dubai's approximately $35 billion expansion project for Al Maktoum International Airport. This development, covering roughly 27 square miles, is ultimately designed to handle over 260 million passengers annually. According to Engineering News-Record (ENR) reporting from 2024, the airport will eventually replace Dubai International Airport as the emirate's primary aviation hub. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed, Dubai's second deputy ruler, said in 2024 when announcing the expansion plans that the new airport would ultimately be more than five times the size of Dubai International Airport, laying the foundation for the expected growth of Dubai's aviation sector over the next 40 years.

Dubai officials said in June that construction contracts currently being executed exceed $3.5 billion, with more than $15 billion in additional work in the pipeline for award. Work already advanced includes the pouring of over 17,000 concrete piles and more than 58.9 million cubic yards of earthworks. A second runway has been completed ahead of the rehabilitation of the existing runway, with core infrastructure works using approximately 5.9 million cubic yards of concrete.

Suzanne Al Anani, CEO of Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects (DAEP), said contracts being prepared for award cover the APM and baggage handling systems, the substructures of the West Terminal and Concourse 4, and the superstructures of the West Terminal and the first three concourses. Other planned contracts include approximately 16.1 million square feet of long-span structural framing, southern airfield infrastructure, power plants, and district cooling plants.

DAEP's previously published construction sequence called for an underground APM with four stations to be built first during the initial development phase, followed by three additional stations at Concourse 2, ultimately forming a 14-station loop connecting the airport's airside buildings. ENR also reported the same four-station first phase configuration in 2024.

MHI described the current nine-station system as part of the first phase of the airport's development. Neither Dubai officials nor MHI have explained the relationship between the nine-station configuration and DAEP's previously announced phasing.

At roughly 31 miles, the APM line will be more than six times the length of the Skylink at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW). According to DFW, each Skylink loop has 4.81 miles of elevated track. At Al Maktoum International Airport, multiple APM tracks are planned to be laid beneath the apron, transporting passengers between terminals and concourses.

Each concourse is designed to cover approximately 24.8 million square feet, extending about 1.7 miles with 100 gates, and featuring a central passenger area with APM connections. The seven-story West Terminal is planned to span approximately 8.6 million square feet with an annual passenger capacity of 45 million.

Separate underground baggage tunnels and a bulk handling center are designed to process up to 30,000 bags per hour. DAEP said automated guided vehicles (AGVs) will carry baggage through security and sorting areas, delivering it directly to aircraft stands via pop-up hatches, a design intended to avoid disrupting ground operations.

The airport's final airfield configuration plans five parallel runways capable of accommodating Code F aircraft. Four runways will be spaced more than 4,900 feet apart, allowing up to four aircraft to conduct simultaneous parallel approaches. The runways will be approximately 2.8 miles long, with rapid-exit taxiways and dual taxiways, and a second control tower is planned near the center of the airfield.

MHI stated that the APM is scheduled for completion in December 2031, with Al Maktoum International Airport targeting operations to begin in 2032.