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Adnan Al-Jaziri

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  • The engine repair centre developed in Al Ain will cost AED480 million and repair 65,000 parts each year once fully operational by 2030.
  • Sanad, backed by Mubadala, plans to become the world’s fifth-largest engine MRO provider through this major facility.
  • The 17,600 square metre hub will serve five major engine platforms, including LEAP, GTF, GEnx, Trent 700, and V2500.
  • The project will create more than 350 jobs with a strong focus on Emirati talent and Abu Dhabi aerospace growth.

The engine repair centre developed in Al Ain marks a defining moment for the UAE aviation sector. Sanad, backed by Mubadala Investment Company, announced an AED480 million commitment to build a new Repair Centre of Excellence. The facility targets a position among the top five engine overhaul providers across the global MRO industry. Your understanding of this investment starts with knowing how big the demand shift truly is.

Global engine volumes keep rising as airlines expand fleets and retire older aircraft faster. Sanad already served over 80 customers worldwide before this new facility entered the plan. In 2025 alone, the company added 24 new airline customers to its growing international network. Engine inductions are forecast to rise from 230 annually in 2025 to over 500 by 2035. That doubling of volume makes in-house repair capability a financial and operational priority for the firm.

Engine Repair Centre Developed in Al Ain Anchors Abu Dhabi Aerospace Strategy

The 17,600 square metre facility will sit inside Al Ain Aerospace Park and open fully by 2030. Sanad will consolidate all its repair work into one integrated platform for greater speed. The hub will cover five major engine types: Trent 700, V2500, LEAP, GEnx, and GTF. Repair volumes are expected to reach 65,000 parts per year once the site reaches full output. In 2025, the company inspected 43,000 parts and completed engine overhaul work on 19,000 components. That growth gap shows exactly why this new investment is necessary for Sanad to scale.

Mansoor Janahi, Managing Director and Group CEO of Sanad, put the strategy clearly. He said: “Repairs are increasingly becoming the defining factor in engine MRO.” He added that building capabilities in-house is critical to improving turnaround times and creating in-country value. As I see it, this statement signals a deliberate shift away from relying on third-party repair providers. Bringing key functions under one roof reduces cost exposure and strengthens delivery reliability for airline clients.

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Sanad Targets Top Five MRO Ranking Through Strategic Al Ain Investment

The engine repair centre developed in Al Ain will also serve other MRO providers needing specialist support. This opens a second revenue stream beyond direct airline contracts and adds commercial flexibility. No other independent MRO in the MENA region currently offers repair capabilities at this scale. Sanad will hold a unique market position once the facility reaches full operational status in 2030. That position strengthens the broader Abu Dhabi aerospace push to become a recognised global aviation hub.

Mubadala’s support gives Sanad the financial backing to commit to long-term infrastructure at this level. The greenfield design means the facility starts fresh with workflows built for efficiency from day one. Workers will not face the delays common in retrofitted or repurposed industrial buildings. Operational speed and precision matter greatly in MRO, where aircraft downtime carries serious financial consequences for airlines.

The facility will also support the UAE’s wider economic agenda by localising high-value aerospace skills. More than 350 jobs will come from this project, with Emirati nationals prioritised across technical and operational roles. This aligns directly with national workforce development goals and the UAE’s broader diversification strategy.

The Centre Sets a New Regional Standard

The engine repair centre developed in Al Ain sends a clear signal to the global MRO community. Sanad now competes not just regionally but on a world stage with the largest engine service providers. The company’s contracted backlog already reached AED38 billion, covering more than 1,000 shop visits over three decades. That backlog confirms sustained demand and gives investors confidence in the long-term revenue outlook. You can read this investment as both a capacity decision and a competitive statement.

The Abu Dhabi aerospace sector gains a significant anchor asset through this single project. Sanad’s engine overhaul expertise, combined with the new facility’s scale, creates a compelling case for airline operators worldwide. Airlines choosing MRO partners weigh cost, turnaround speed, and platform coverage above almost everything else. This facility addresses all three of those factors in one integrated location. The engine repair centre developed in Al Ain now stands as the clearest proof of the UAE’s aerospace ambitions.

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  • Economy, Finance, Mubadala

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Apple's iPhone Duo
  • iPhone

The iPhone Duo is Apple’s first foldable iPhone, and it opens like a small book into a 7.6-inch screen. Closed, you hold a 5.4-inch outer display that fits in a pocket. Both screens share the same aspect ratio, so a video or app scales cleanly as you move between them. Stand it up on a table, and it works hands-free for calls or video. Apple showed the phone on September 9 at its Surprise and Shine event in Cupertino, where new chief executive John Ternus led his first keynote. He said rival foldables often feel like two phones stuck together. The Duo tries to feel like one device that changes size when you need it.

What the screens and camera can do

Open the Duo and the inner display runs 50 percent larger than the iPhone 18 Pro Max. A custom nano-texture finish cuts glare and hides the crease, the seam that has annoyed foldable owners for years. Peak brightness reaches 3000 nits, so the screen stays readable outdoors. Inside, an under-display FaceTime camera keeps the view whole, with no notch breaking the screen. The rear camera leans on a 48MP Dual Fusion system with a main and an ultra-wide lens. There is no telephoto, a trade Apple made to save room in the thin body. Smart Take reads the scene and snaps the photo when everyone poses, so you can stand in the shot instead of behind it. You can also shoot 48MP photos and 4K video at up to 120 frames per second.

iPhone Duo specs that matter for daily use

The iPhone Duo specs point to a phone built for long, heavy days. Inside sits the A20 Pro chip with a vapor chamber that spreads heat during games and video edits. Apple pairs it with a dual-battery design that fits more cells into the frame. You get up to 31 hours of video on the inner screen and up to 44 hours on the outer one. Plug it in, and it reaches 50 percent in about 20 minutes. A Grade 5 titanium frame and a precision hinge give the body its strength, and Touch ID moves to the side button in place of Face ID.

iPhone Duo prices are ridiculously high

Here is the part your wallet cares about. The iPhone Duo price starts at $1,999 for 256GB in the United States, which makes it the most expensive iPhone in the lineup. In the UAE, iPhone Duo starts at AED 8,499 for the 256 GB, AED 9,349 for the 512 GB, AED 11,049 for the 1 TB, and the laptop-price level of AED 13,599 for the 2 TB. Preorders open October 16, and the iPhone Duo release date lands on October 23. Apple plans a first wave across more than 70 countries, then adds 28 more on October 30. For comparison, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 8 starts near $1,899.

Why the foldable iPhone arrives only now

Apple waited years while Samsung and others sold foldables. Now the foldable iPhone brings iOS 27 features built for two screens, like Split View and apps that respond to how you hold the phone. eSIM handles the connection, since there is no SIM tray anywhere. Apple Pencil support arrives later in 2026. That gap of a few weeks after the iPhone 18 Pro points to a slower, careful rollout for a harder build. If you have wanted a phone that turns into a small tablet without feeling clumsy, this is Apple’s answer, and you can hold one this month.

  • 3 min read
Work from Park initiative
  • Business

The Work from Park initiative puts bookable workspaces inside Dubai’s public parks, starting with Al Barsha Pond Park. Dubai Municipality announced the programme on 19 April 2026 and said it had signed two memoranda of cooperation to deliver it. One went to Group AMANA, which builds the units, and the other to Letswork LLC, which operates them.

Entrepreneurs, freelancers, small and medium-sized enterprises

The structure is a public-private partnership. Dubai Municipality provides the park and the mandate. Private firms handle design, construction, and daily operation. The municipality said the model gives the private sector a route into public facilities while each site keeps its role as a park.

Target users are entrepreneurs, freelancers, small and medium-sized enterprises, and anyone doing remote work in Dubai. Content creators get dedicated production rooms, which the municipality said are meant to strengthen their place in the emirate’s creative economy.

Letswork runs the booking side. Users reserve space through the Letswork app, check in on arrival and use one membership across the company’s network of venues. The offer covers desks by the hour, event space, podcast recording and production rooms for creators. Letswork will also run training programmes and group sessions for creative talent and new businesses.

How the Work from Park initiative is built

Group AMANA delivers the first site through its DuBox unit. DuBox builds the workspace modules in a factory, then transports them to the park and assembles them on site. The municipality said this shortens the build schedule, reduces waste and lowers the environmental footprint compared with conventional construction. Units can be reconfigured later as demand shifts.

The Al Barsha Pond Park site was scheduled to open in May 2026. Letswork now lists it as a bookable venue on its platform. The listing describes modular pods with high-speed Wi-Fi, power and climate-controlled seating, plus podcast studios and creative production rooms. Members can book day passes, meeting rooms and private offices under one Letswork membership.

Dubai Municipality said the Work from Park initiative would add more sites across the emirate later in 2026. Locations and opening dates for those have yet to be confirmed.

Bader Anwahi, CEO of the Public Facilities Agency at Dubai Municipality, said the partnerships combine advanced construction methods with private sector expertise to produce public infrastructure “that is flexible, sustainable, and aligned with modern lifestyles and work patterns.”

Richard Abboud, CEO of Group AMANA, said modular construction lets the company build efficient, adaptable units at speed.

Why the Work from Park initiative fits Dubai’s planning goals

The programme sits under three policy frameworks. Dubai’s 2040 Parks and Greenery Strategy targets 95 million park visits a year by 2040. Land use falls under the Dubai Urban Plan 2040. Economic targets through 2033 come from the Dubai Economic Agenda D33.

Omar AlMheiri, co-founder of Letswork, said the partnership would add dedicated creative spaces and podcast studios. He described it as a step toward changing where and how people in the UAE do flexible work.

Dubai Municipality describes the Work from Park initiative as the first of its kind. Existing Dubai coworking spaces operate from office towers, hotels and retail sites. This programme moves the format onto municipal parkland, with the municipality as host and a private platform as operator.

Outdoor workspaces in Dubai face one obvious constraint: summer heat. The Letswork listing addresses this with climate-controlled seating inside the pods. Demand across a full year of operation will show whether the format holds. The second site, once announced, will be the next signal of how fast the municipality intends to scale.

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