Historic photos of Dubai International Airport

Dubai International Airport is a major aviation hub in the Middle East, spread over an area of 7,200 acres of land.

Opened in 1960, the Dubai airport has a glorious history.

Take a look at historic photos of one of the world's most stunning airports....

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Photographs, courtesy: Dubai International Airport website

In 2011, Dubai Airport handled a record 50.98 million in passenger traffic, a 8% increase over the 2010 fiscal year. The Dubai airport is the 7th busiest airport in the world by passenger traffic and the 4th busiest airport in the world by international passenger traffic.

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In addition to being an important passenger traffic hub, the airport was the 6th busiest cargo airport in world, handling 2.27 million tonnes of cargo in 2011.

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The total number of commercial aircraft movements was 326,317 in 2011. The airport has seen over 402 million passengers at an average annual growth rate of 15.5 per cent, and handled over 3.87 million aircraft at an average annual growth rate of 12.4 per cent.

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The new $4.5 billion Terminal 3 opened on 14 October 2008, and was built exclusively for the use of Emirates Airline.

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Terminal 3 is the second largest building in the world by floor space and the largest airport terminal in the world, increasing the total capacity of the airport to over 62 million passengers.

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The airport has plans to extend the total capacity of the airport to over 90 million passengers by 2018.

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Dubai International Airport will be complemented by Al Maktoum International Airport (Dubai World Central International Airport), a new 140 km2 (54 sq mi) airport that will help handle travellers in future.

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Built at a whopping cost of $4.5 billion, Dubai's swanky Terminal 3 is dedicated for Emirates Airline.

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The baggage handling system – largest system and also the deepest in the world – has a capacity to handle 8,000 bags per hour.

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The mega-project required the excavation of over 10 million cubic metres of earth, enough to fill 4,000 Olympic-size swimming pools. 

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The system includes 21 screening injection points, 49 make-up carousels, 90 km of conveyor belts capable of handling 15,000 items per hour at a speed of 27 km/h, and 4,500 early baggage storage positions

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As much as 450,000 tonnes of steel was used for reinforcement and another 33,000 tonnes of steel was required for the structure; that's approximately the weight of 850 Airbus A380s.

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Passenger traffic at Dubai International, the world's fourth busiest hub for international passengers and freight, crossed the 4.5 million mark for the fourth consecutive month, according to the April traffic report issued by Dubai Airports.

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Dubai International recorded a total of 28,503 aircraft movements in April, up 7.2 per cent compared to 26,597 in April 2011.

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Dubai Airports has won the Employer of the Year Award at the GCC HR Excellence Awards for the second consecutive year.

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Dubai Airports was awarded the 'Best Airport in the Middle East' for the sixth consecutive year at the annual Business Traveller Awards.

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A view of Dubai Airport during the 1970s.

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A view of the Dubai Airport during the 1970s.

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A view of the Dubai Airport during the 1990s.

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A view of the Dubai Airport in 2000.

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A view of the Dubai Airport in the 70s.

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A view of the airside in 1970s.

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A view of the Dubai airport in the 1970s.

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A view of the Dubai Lounge in the 1970s.