Airport Expo Dubai, the US$82 million exhibition and conference complex adjacent to Dubai International Airport, was purpose-built for the Dubai 2000 Airshow. More than 500 industry exhibitors and 30,000 visitors from across the globe attended the record-breaking show in November 1999. The event proved to be a resounding success on the ground, with major deals totalling $713 million being brokered during the three-day industry showcase. It was no less exciting in the air, with the world-renowned Red Arrows from Britain's Royal Air Force and Patrouille de France performing breathtaking aerobatics on each day of the show. The latest in civil and military aircraft also took to the sky, demonstrating their capabilities to potential buyers.
    The airshow's profile has grown tremendously since its inception in 1989, and the decision by the Dubai Government and the Department of Civil Aviation to build a state-of-the-art facility has firmly placed Dubai on a par with other internationally- acclaimed airshows such as Farnborough, Paris and Singapore. Indeed, the Dubai International Aerospace Exhibition is now ranked alongside Farnborough and Paris in terms of industry importance, and in terms of airshow facilities, the new site makes it the number one in the world.
    Dubai World Trade Center has taken on the management of the Dubai Airport Expo site, although the British-based company Fairs and Exhibitions, in cooperation with the Government of Dubai, the DCA, Dubai International Airport and the UAE Armed Forces, will continue to organize the airshow - as it has done since the show was inaugurated in 1989.
    Dubai 2001, the seventh international aerospace exhibition, promises to be the biggest in the airshow's history with nearly two-thirds of available space already reserved. Companies from 16 countries have confirmed their attendance at the show, which will be held from November 4-8, 2001.
    The Airport Expo site is linked to the main runway at Dubai International Airport via a dedicated taxiway and has three entry roads for exhibitors and visitors.
    The main reception building at the complex opens out to a central plaza, creating the atmosphere and ambience of a village square, complete with restaurants, shops and an information center. It is flanked by two vast exhibition centers, and to one side is the control tower built especially for the airshow.
    The only facility of its kind in the world, Airport Expo Dubai was completed ahead of schedule in a remarkable feat of engineering and construction. Work on the superstructure began in December 1998, and from then on an average of 2,500 workers, rising to 4,500 during peak times, worked day and night to complete the site.