On March 18th, 1971, the Emirate of Dubai saw the establishment of the Department of Civil Aviation by His Highness the Ruler of Dubai. This pivotal department was entrusted with the oversight of all civil aviation affairs and the management of Dubai International Airport.

Recognizing the significant impact of the aviation sector on Dubai's economy, a need arose to restructure the Department of Civil Aviation. The objective was to ensure sustained success and development of the aviation sector while establishing a clear demarcation between regulatory and operational powers. Consequently, Law No. (8) of 2006 Regarding Establishing DACC, Law No. (21) of 2007 Regarding Establishing Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, and Law No. (24) of 2007 Regarding Repealing the Order Establishing the Department of Civil Aviation were issued. These legislative measures facilitated the separation of powers, with DACC assuming ownership of aviation infrastructure, including Dubai International Airport, while Dubai Civil Aviation Authority became the regulatory body.

To further delineate responsibilities, two public corporations were instituted under the DACC umbrella. Firstly, Dubai Airports Corporation which is mandated by Law No. (23) of 2007 to manage both Dubai International Airport and the forthcoming Al Maktoum International Airport and Secondly, Dubai Air Navigation Services ("DANS"), by virtue of Law No. (22) of 2007, which provides air navigation services to support the growing aviation sector in Dubai.

Established in 2008, Duserve a subsidiary of Dubai South has grown to become a leading “one-stop-shop” integrated facilities management service provider, catering to needs of customers across the sector.

27 June 2010 saw the inagueration of Al Maktoum International airport, for cargo operations which was followed by passenger flights later in 2013. Once completed, Al Maktoum International Airport will be the worlds largest airport.

Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects, established by Law No. (2) of 2012, emerged as an affiliated corporation of DACC with the crucial mandate for the design, master-planning, infrastructure development and construction of Dubai’s dynamic aviation sector.

Two landmark laws were enacted:

Firstly, a new Law No.(10) of 2015 was issued to further foster DACC’s growth and development of the aviation sector in Dubai. The new Law entrusted DACC with a number of strategic objectives, such as: 

• promoting Dubai as an international hub for aviation and related services,
• supporting aviation investments in commercial, real estate, services, and industrial fields
• promoting Dubai as a prime destination for hosting and organising aviation exhibitions and events.

In addition the new Law regulates the relationship between DACC and its affiliated corporations, as well as enhancing DACC’s roles and responsibilities as a licensing and regulatory authority.

Secondly, a new affiliated corporation to DACC was established as Dubai World Central Corporation (“Dubai South”) by virtue of Law No. (11) of 2015. Dubai South functions as DACC’s commercial arm and is responsible for the management and development of Dubai South, the largest single urban master development, focusing on the growth of an aviation and logistics ecosystem that will ultimately house the largest airport in the world, complemented by a multi-modal transport infrastructure connecting air, land and sea.

The founding of Dubai South Properties (“DSP”) as a subsidary of Dubai South, DSP was established to develop Dubai South Zones and manage its real estate portfolio. Dubai South Properties has a multitude of different commercial and residential projects in view as the residential district. Which is a master planned city offering world-class community living within an urban environment. An innovative concept in urban living, that aims to create a city based on the happiness and wellbeing of people.

Dubai South entered into a Joint Venture with Emaar for the formation of “Emaar South” the newest mega-development in Dubai South, one of the city's most sought-after destinations of the future, just minutes from the Al Maktoum International Airport and in easy proximity to the Expo 2020 Dubai site.

2017 saw the setup of South Energy as a subsidiary of Dubai South, with South Energy’s vision set to continuously expand its capability to provide advanced sustainable energy-efficient cooling solutions for the rapidly expanding in Dubai South Zones and beyond.

Dubai South Association was established to achieve "Enabling Sustainable Societies" by providing the operating intelligence that enables sustainability, and strive to improve the performance of properties which will in turn have a profound impact on the residents, tenants and landlords within Dubai South districts.

2023 marked the entry into a PPP (Private Public Partnership) with Empower to establish DXB CoolCo FZCO, this new venture has become the main and sole district cooling service provider for Dubai International Airport.

Mohammed bin Rashid approves designs of new passenger terminal at Al Maktoum International Airport

His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, reviewed the strategic plan of the Dubai Aviation Engineering Projects and approved designs for the new passenger terminal at Al Maktoum International Airport, which will be the largest in the world when fully operational. Set to be built at a cost of AED128 billion, the new terminal will ultimately enable the airport to handle a passenger capacity of 260 million annually.