Dubai: Asian airlines are mounting a challenge to the Middle East carriers by establishing hubs of their own in the Gulf.

Taking a page from the successes Gulf carriers have experienced from their strategically located airports, China Southern, Air China and Air Asia X are said to be developing hubs in the Gulf.

Next month, Air China will use Dubai International Airport as a stopover point to deliver travellers between Beijing and Athens.

John Chandy, Dubai sales manager at Air China, said this is only the first of several routes anticipated from the UAE. "Using Dubai as hub for Air China has been part of the plan for some time," he said. "We will probably fly to other cities next year as well."