Bahrain International Airport is one of the first international hubs established in its region, operating, and serving Bahrain as an international gateway. Until the year 2010, the airport did this under the administration and management of the Bahrain Civilian Aviation Authority. Then, as part of nationwide reforms, the management of the airport was transferred to the Bahrain Airport Company. The regulation of the airport was separated from its operational responsibility, Bahrain Airport Company was mandated to manage and develop the airport, and it has done so ever since.
“It has been almost 12 years since the airport began running under BAC,” Mohamed Al Binfalah, CEO of Bahrain Airport Company says. “During that time we have carried out forecasts on how to transform the airport into a modern regional hub. We want it to serve not only national carriers but the wider community of airlines that connect to the Kingdom of Bahrain.”
It is a project that has involved a widespread program of modernisation, including a host of projects and initiatives. First among these is the development of a new passenger terminal building, 
with a capacity of 14 million passengers. Impressively for a project of this scale, the construction of the terminal was delivered on time, within budget, and with a high-quality build environment. The end result is a green building-certified facility that provides a seamless passenger experience.
That seamless passenger experience is the keystone of Bahrain International Airport’s offering.
“We are not a huge airport. We are in fact one of the smallest airports in the region, a single runway operation,” Al Binfalah observes. “But our main competitive advantage is the customer experience-centric approach we have developed for our guests. We have a high-quality building, the level of service we offer is very high, and we have been recognised within a relatively short period of time by the likes of Skytrax, achieving a five-star rating for the second year in a row.”
More than that, Bahrain International Airport was awarded the title of “Best New Airport in the World” by Skytrax last year.
“That’s a testament to the focus we have established for ourselves as a strategic objective in creating unique, exceptional travel experiences,” Al Binfalah says.
A Strategic Path
While there is no disputing the quality of experience that Bahrain International Airport offers, it is equally true that functioning as a smaller airport in a competitive environment comes with operational challenges, particularly at a time when the agenda of the air travel industry as a whole is shifting.
“We have an Enterprise Risk Management framework that lets us ensure we address the operational risks in a way that mitigates them,” Al Binfalah explains. “We are very ambitious in advancing our sustainability goals. We advocate for the Airport Council’s international long-term carbon goals which we announced sometime the year before last. Our trajectory is to achieve net zero by the year 2050. We have an active strategic plan to implement sustainability objectives within the airport.”
As well as pivoting towards more sustainable practices, the Bahrain Airport Company is also looking at ways to diversify its revenue streams.
“The Covid pandemic has demonstrated the risk associated with passenger-driven revenues, so we are exploring non-aeronautical initiatives such as cargo,” Al Binfalah points out.
This is why the airport is currently developing a new cargo and logistic facility.
Positioned for Logistics
As Al Binfalah explains, the airport is perfectly positioned for such a facility. He tells us, “Bahrain enjoys a competitive geographical location within the Arabian Gulf. We are set approximately 25 km from the largest economy in the region and we enjoy a host of competitive advantages in terms of infrastructure, logistical frameworks and efficient processes that lend themselves to invite and support for cargo and logistics operators.”
The airport plays a key role in the sector, so Al Binfalah believes this is an area that is strategic for the company and the airport to develop further.
“We have built facilities on behalf of third-party logistics operators and have signed up with one of those as an anchor tenant,” Al Binfalah says. “Their facility is due to be ready for operation by the end of this year.”
Bahrain Airport Company also intends to build on the airport’s position by working to improve the Kingdom of Bahrain’s air connectivity, particularly as the country has so much to offer.
“We are focused on developing our route development strategy to engage proactively with airlines and showcase the diverse offering of the Kingdom of Bahrain as a destination,” Al Binfalah says. “We have managed to win the hosting of the Routes World 2024 conference for next year, hosted in Bahrain in October 2024. We encourage airlines to explore the diverse offering Bahrain has in the tourism and business environments.”
From the third to the fifth of March, Bahrain will also be hosting the first race in the F1 calendar, with a significant number of guests attending from all over the world.
Positioned for Talent
Of course, the other thing Bahrain has to offer is its people, and talking to Al Binfalah it is clear how proud his of the team Bahrain Airport Company has put together.
“We are a responsible employer, with a focus on developing and retaining local talent. We have launched several initiatives to attract such talent,” he says. “One of those is a program to build
capacity that we launched in 2014. Through that program, we worked collaboratively with a government agency in charge of promoting the employment of local talent. We managed to recruit 80 young graduates from different universities, local and national, and enrolled them in an extensive training program within the new terminal building project.”
Those graduates worked through the full project cycle, from design to construction, and participated in the testing and operation of the new terminals.
“We found that to be one of our most ambitious programs,” Al Binfalah reports. “Most involved in it are still retained within Bahrain Airport Company in positions in middle management across various functions.”
With the airport’s strategic focus on customer experience and sustainability, Al Binfalah is determined to make Bahrain International Airport one of the best, not only in the region but in the world for passenger experience.
“We have created a highly structured approach to achieve this target, with the full support of senior management and the staff across the airport’s community,” Al Binfalah says. “We are going to make sure this airport is fully recognised for its exceptional experience.”
With the airport already expected to receive further recognition at the Passenger Terminal Expo next month in Amsterdam, it is clear that even now, this is only the beginning of Bahrain International Airport’s story.
