Passenger capacity is also estimated to rise by 6.6 percent this year and a further 4.9 percent increase is forecast for 2018. The success of the aviation industry in the sky is matched in the Middle East by the continued infrastructure investment. The total value of 152 active aviation-related projects in the Middle East reached USD57.7 billion at the end of April, according to research provider BNC Network.

In the GCC countries, Saudi Arabia accounted for the largest share of project value, at 46 percent of the GCC’s total, followed by the UAE at 26 percent, and Kuwait with 12 percent. The Gulf region’s aviation projects also accounted for 72 percent of the total estimated value for all aviation projects in the Middle East and North Africa.