Dubai's Emirates flagship airline plans to ground 19 or 20 planes from May because of runway construction work at Dubai International Airport, the airline's president Tim Clark said on Monday.

That number of planes represents roughly 10 percent of the airline's fleet of about 200 planes. The work is expected to be finished by July 20, Clark told reporters.

"It'll have an impact on the revenue. We will have to learn how to manage this," he said without elaborating.

Passenger flows through the airport, which is an important source of economic growth for Dubai, jumped 15.2 per cent to a record 66.4 million people in 2013. The impact of the runway work on Emirates suggests growth in traffic may temporarily slow. - Reuters