Home / About Us
Nearly three decades on the Sharjah apron
Dolphin Air has provided aircraft maintenance, storage and painting at Sharjah International Airport, SAIF Zone, since 1996.
Built alongside the growth of UAE aviation
When Dolphin Air began operating in 1996, Sharjah International Airport was already establishing itself as a working aviation hub, a place where aircraft were maintained, stored, traded and turned around rather than simply passed through.
We built the business around that reality. Rather than specialising in a single narrow service, we developed the on-ground capabilities operators actually need in sequence: somewhere secure to put the aircraft, the maintenance capability to keep it serviceable, the facilities to refinish it, and eventually the capability to dismantle it responsibly at end of life.
Close to thirty years later that breadth is still the point. An operator can bring an airframe to Sharjah and deal with one accountable party across its entire on-ground lifecycle, inside one facility, under one set of standards.
How the facility developed
- 1996: Operations begin at Sharjah International Airport. Dolphin Air FZE is established as a Free Zone Establishment providing aircraft parking and storage.
- Growth phase: Covered storage and on-site maintenance capability are added as based and transient operators look for protected parking and serviceability between flight cycles.
- Diversification: The facility broadens into aircraft refinishing and painting, commercial and workshop leasing, and controlled dismantling and recovery operations.
- Today: Five integrated service lines under one operator, backed by the Abdulla Bin Zayed Investment Group.
Part of the Abdulla Bin Zayed Investment Group
Dolphin Air FZE operates as a member of the Abdulla Bin Zayed Investment Group. For clients, that affiliation is not a marketing line. It is what makes long-horizon commitments credible.
- Continuity: a facility that will still be here at the end of a multi-year lease
- Capital depth: infrastructure maintained and invested in, not run to failure
- Governance: institutional oversight of how the facility is operated
Zero-compromise safety
Aircraft movements, hangar operations and contractor activity are governed by defined safety procedures aligned to international aviation standards.
Asset protection
Controlled facility access and documented custody. We know which airframe is where, who authorised the movement, and who has been near it.
Client discretion
Ownership details, movement schedules and maintenance activity remain confidential. Discretion is a standing condition of doing business with us.
Why Sharjah International Airport
Position matters more in aviation than in almost any other property decision.
Airside connectivity
Aircraft transit directly between apron and hangar inside the airport perimeter, with no public-road movement, no additional handling exposure.
Free-zone advantages
SAIF Zone licensing brings customs and import efficiencies for aircraft parts, tooling and equipment moving through the facility.
Regional reach
Central to the northern Emirates and within straightforward road access of Dubai, with an established cargo and maintenance ecosystem alongside.
Yes. Dolphin Air FZE operates as part of the Abdulla Bin Zayed Investment Group, a UAE investment group whose backing underwrites our ability to commit to long-term storage agreements and multi-year commercial leases.
FZE stands for Free Zone Establishment, the corporate structure for entities licensed within a UAE free zone. Ours is licensed in the Sharjah Airport International Free Zone (SAIF Zone), which brings customs and logistics advantages to clients importing aircraft, parts and equipment.
Private aircraft owners, corporate flight departments, fleet and asset managers, MRO providers, and aviation businesses seeking licensed commercial premises inside the airport free zone.
Speak with the team behind the facility
Whether you are placing an aircraft, planning a refinishing input, or looking for licensed commercial premises inside SAIF Zone, our operations team can talk you through what is available.