UAE. Abu Dhabi International Airport has been officially renamed Zayed International Airport, to honour Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, founder of the United Arab Emirates.
The new name takes effect from today (9 February) and coincides with a special ceremony held this morning to inaugurate the airport’s new (formerly) Terminal A, which soft opened last November.
The Moodie Davitt Report is on location to cover the landmark celebrations and to conclude preparation on a special eZine dedicated to the new airport, which will be published next month.
{Here we show an extrordinary clip from the opening ceremony, featuring 1,750 drones deployed to sensationally visual effect. Courtesy SkyMagic)
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Abu Dhabi Airports Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Elena Sorlini said, “Today, we are immensely proud to rename Abu Dhabi’s largest airport in honour of the founding father of the UAE, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al Nhyan.
“By renaming the airport in his memory, we are celebrating his legacy and his vision for Abu Dhabi and the UAE. We are working together to make his vision a reality and we are already achieving great results.
“The last time we saw each other was 30 days before the opening of Zayed International Airport [when known as Abu Dhabi International Airport Terminal A- Ed], and we were all a bit anxious and eager about the outcome of the new airport. Today, we can finally celebrate our impressive achievement.
“The opening went smoothly and was very successful and, above all, the passengers’ feedback has been really positive.
“Today, we are handling +20% more traffic than in the southside terminals, and we serve 120 travel destinations, 20 more than last year, through 28 international airlines.
“I personally think the secret ingredient of our success is placing the passengers at the heart of everything we do, constantly working together in a coordinated way to deliver the best possible passenger experience.
“I know that everyone who’s here today has worked very hard to make this happen, and I am truly grateful to each of you for this shared achievement.
“I especially want to thank our Chairman, Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad Al Nahyan, for his constant support and his trust in this very large team. You truly are the glue that keeps the Abu Dhabi aviation sector together and make us successful.”
Sorlini then closed with a quote from Sheikh Zayed – “It’s our duty to accomplish the impossible, achieve the unexpected and strive to create the things that bring happiness to the people.”
She concluded: “I think that these words from Sheikh Zayed perfectly embrace Zayed International Airport’s vision. And i know that I can rely on your ongoing support to continue to make it a reality.”
“You will see that across all the touch points we have changed the logo, and we have a lot of activations across the terminal,” Sorlini told The Moodie Davitt Report in a one to one conversation after the ceremony. “So the idea is to celebrate together with our passengers as well this very important moment.”
Commenting on the airport having been named after the father figure of the UAE, she added, “It’s a huge honour and we need to live up to this kind of expectation.”
Sorlini said the airport is witnessing “very, very good growth” in terms of passenger traffic. “We have quite a challenging target for this year but I’m pretty sure that we can achieve it and attract new airlines to Abu Dhabi to support the growth of the airlines that are here.
“I’m also meeting regularly all the CEOs of the airlines and the concessionaires to see what are the issues because it’s all new. We need to understand the flows, the footfall and how we can redistribute the traffic in a smart way to make sure that everybody can get the maximum from airport. Because, of course, if they’re successful, the airport is successful in return.”
The new terminal has the capacity to host 45 million passengers annually and accommodate 79 aircraft at any given time, strengthening the aviation sector’s contribution to Abu Dhabi’s diversified economy.
The 35,000sq m commercial zone features 163 retail and food & beverage concessionaires, offering passengers a wide variety of shopping and dining opportunities. ✈ {More to follow soon}
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