UAE: New GCC civil aviation authority to be headquartered in Emirates

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries will soon have a civil aviation authority for all the member nations — headquartered right here in the UAE.

At the 46th session of the GCC Summit, held in Bahrain on Wednesday, December 3, the establishment of a civil aviation authority for the GCC was announced and approved. This comes as part of the Summit's aim to enhance connection and integration between the member states.

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A general agreement for the GCC Railway project was also approved at the Summit. This project aims to connect all six member states — Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain — via rail by 2026, cutting commute times between the countries and encouraging intra-GCC travel.

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One-stop travel system

The GCC had earlier approved a ‘one-stop’ travel system which allows passengers to Gulf citizens to complete all checks — including immigration, customs, and security checks — a single checkpoint, eliminating the need for multiple inspections upon arrival. The pilot has started this month between UAE and Bahrain, with more states to be included soon if the initial rollout is successful.

Supreeta Balasubramanian

supreeta@khaleejtimes.com