After a decade of construction and almost four years behind schedule , the Middle East 's latest airport destination began full operations earlier this week . Hamad International Airport in Doha , Qatar , will eventually occupy 29 square kilometers ( roughly a third of the size of Doha city itself ) and comes in at a total cost of $ 15 billion . The giant facility will have an annual capacity of 50 million passengers as well as public spaces for art exhibitions , a VIP terminal inspired by Arabian sailboats and an aquatic themed mosque . Like an increasing number of oil and gas rich cities in the region , Doha is attempting to diversify its economy to make the most of new trade and tourism opportunities . For the head of Qatar 's ambitious national carrier , the much-awaited development could n't have come soon enough . `` It gives us unlimited opportunities , '' Qatar Airways CEO , Akbar al Baker told CNN . `` Doha International Airport was very congested . It was overcrowded . We could not give the standard of service we would prefer our passengers to have on the ground . '' Analysts say Doha , like its Gulf neighbors , understands the power and potential of aviation to provide a stable long-term industry in the region . `` There 's a recognition by the ( Qatari ) government that aviation plays a wider economic role which does n't only directly support jobs , '' said John Strickland , director of aviation analytics firm JLS Consulting . `` It ( also ) supports trade , it supports stability to develop tourism and we 've seen that that 's been done very effectively for example in Dubai , '' Strickland added . Dubai opened the doors of its second airport , the mammoth Dubai World Central , just last year . There are already plans to increase annual capacity there from the 120 million agreed upon during the initial design phase to over 200 million . `` Ultimately we want to create the world 's largest airport , '' said Paul Griffiths , CEO of Dubai Airports . `` The current largest airport in the world in Atlanta , Georgia , is about 89 million passengers so you can see the kind of scale and order we are looking at , '' Griffiths added . In Abu Dhabi , meanwhile , construction is underway for the new Midfield Terminal Complex at Abu Dhabi International Airport . Set to open in 2017 , it will have a capacity of 30 million passengers per year alone . Such massive developments ensure competition in the region is stiff . But with so much capacity will there be enough tourism and trade to go around ? That remains to be seen , but regional airlines seem convinced and are operating to ambitious expansion schedules themselves . `` Step by step we 're opening up the U.S. but we 're also going to balance that with more cities in Southeast Asia ( and ) in the Middle East , '' said James Hogan CEO of Abu Dhabi carrier , Etihad . According to the International Air Transport Association , Etihad and the other Middle Eastern carriers are currently gaining more passengers than any other region . In the first quarter of this year Dubai International Airport ( a separate facility to Dubai World Central ) became the busiest in the world with more than 18 million passengers , overtaking 16 million at London 's Heathrow . On top of this , many analysts believe the Gulf hubs -- situated just 8 hours flying time from two-thirds of the world 's population -- are well placed to tap into many new and emerging markets in Asia and Africa . `` I do n't think the big hub airports in the Gulf are particularly competing with each other , they are more competing with other parts of the world , '' said John Strickland . `` The Gulf is positioned between growing markets in Asia , Africa and Latin America and the airlines who operate out of these hub airports have very long range modern aircraft . `` Many other airlines in other parts of the world are simply not equipped ... . so , these airports should be able to grow side by side , '' Strickland added . If that 's the case , all that 's left is for the Gulf carriers to grab a piece of the lucrative aviation pie in the skies . See also : Answering Egypt 's economic riddle . See also : Gulf looks to rival Paris as fashion capital . See also : Meet the Middle East 's king of hotels .
Qatar 's sparkling new airport is one of a series of ambitious aviation projects in the Gulf . Countries in region looking to diversify economies to take advantage of location between east and west . Middle East carriers growing faster than airlines in other regions , says IATA .