I’m used to working in a difficult field but so far it’s been very smooth

Christa Soltau has a formidable track record opening airports. And now she’s relishing the hot seat at Dubai World Central

Christa Soltau, Managing Director, Dubai World Central International Airport

Christa Soltau can’t stop smiling and who can blame her? We’re sitting in the sumptuous fifth floor office of Dubai World Central International Airport, overlooking the stunning Emirates Golf Club and ever-changing “New Dubai”.

And the view inside isn’t bad either. The large open plan office, which resembles a small exhibition hall, contains a soothing water feature near the entrance, a mock design of the airport’s 92-metre air traffic control tower, as well as three huge model impressions of the 140-square kilometre (sq km) facility that is rapidly taking shape in Jebel Ali.

Soltau came on board as senior manager of airport ground operations in April, after admittingly “falling in love” with the project two-and-a-half years ago. Now she arguably has the biggest job in UAE aviation, managing director of the new DNATA/Dubai

World Central joint venture that will oversee the airport’s operations.

“I opened Munich and Athens airports and this is my third,” she says. “This project is outstanding, I really feel honoured. I’m used to working in a difficult field but so far it’s been very smooth and well organised.”

Arriving fresh from Dusseldorf Airport, where she was general manager of the Air Cargo Centre, Soltau has more than 20 years of industry experience, mainly in operations, but she confesses that her heart is in cargo, because it is “more lively”.

That message is immediately apparent when you look at how much space has been assigned to cargo at Dubai World Central. In fact, the first plane to touch down will be a freighter, most probably in the fourth quarter of next year.

“Most airports concentrate on the passenger and forget about the real business, which is cargo. The main focus of Dubai World Central is cargo and it’s the first of its kind,” she says.

The airport has a new concept which is designed to integrate handling, air cargo operations, and Dubai Logistics City, all of which is linked up by a bonded road to Jebel Ali port. “We will have a dedicated runway for cargo, close to the cargo terminal, probably by about 2015.”

Shipments will be broken down at a 38,000 square metre cargo terminal, which is close to the runway and adjacent to Dubai Logistics City (DLC) and will be capable of handling up to 600,000 tonnes annually.

“Once this first cargo warehouse has reached its limits we have space for six more warehouses totaling a capacity of four million mtonnes. In addition to this Emirates and Integrators have a capacity of eight million (m) tonnes for their own facilities which give us a total capacity of 12m tonnes.”

Dubai Logistic City is located right next to the cargo warehouses and is the location for forwarders and logistic companies.

While declining to elaborate on how many freight companies are signed up at DLC, she says she believes the facility is growing faster than expected. “There’s a lot of interest and people are prepared to sign the contracts. We’re starting our focus with DLC and the Office Park so companies can settle down there. If, at a later stage, they want to move to Commercial City, they are free to do so.”

Dubai Logistics City offers tenants not only offices but also shared warehouses, or they can build their own facilities, while the whole airport serves as a free zone umbrella, giving companies 100% ownership.

“Customers can choose their own requirements and how they want to set themselves up,” she says. “Reservations have been good, but at this size of the project of course it’s not fully occupied yet.”

Soltau believes one of the key cargo selling points is not only the integrated transfers but also the assembling options open to shippers. A dedicated road link with Dubai International Airport is under discussion.

“If a customer has a component from China and another from Indonesia, they can bring it in by air, assemble it here and send it on, or it can come in by sea and out by air. Dubai has low labour costs so if you want to assemble goods, you don’t have to bring it to Europe because it gets too expensive. There are so many cargo airlines that fly here so you have choice with schedules.”

The final main passenger terminal, planned at the very centre, will handle up to 120 million passengers, while outlying areas are assigned to Commercial and Residential Cities, which will house up to one million people, Dubai Exhibition World, Aviation City and even a golf resort.

And building has already started. “The instrument landing system has been installed,” says Soltau. “If you go out to the construction site now, you can feel it’s becoming an airport. We are ready for the next decade.”

All of this should mean that the skies above Dubai World Central will soon be busy with traffic. Soltau has no immediate concerns about the environmental pressures, saying new-generation aircraft are quieter than your average turbo prop.

“The discussion of airport pollution is nothing compared with what happens elsewhere. Cars are bigger polluters than aircraft.”