Berlin-Brandenburg Airport on track to open in June 2012

The Berlin-Brandenburg Airport, the new airport under construction to the south of Berlin, is on track to open in June 2012.

The opening of the airport will mean business travellers and tourusts gain access to a high-tech airport with convenient connections, international flights, direct motorway access, and a rail station under the main terminal.

The airport will use some of the infrastructure of the existing Berlin Schönefeld Airport (Flughafen Berlin Schönefeld) in Schönefeld and will be named additionally after the former German Chancellor and Mayor of West-Berlin Willy Brandt. Schönefeld is located on the border between Berlin and Brandenburg, the state surrounding Berlin; the name reflects that the airport will serve both.

Following a ten-year administrative court struggle, the project got underway in 2006. Berlin-Brandenburg International will replace the three airports in Berlin. Tempelhof Airport closed in 2008, and Tegel Airport will also close, in 2012 at the latest. The existing airport in Schönefeld will be greatly expanded to the south from its current state to allow this, thus becoming the third busiest airport in Germany.

Berlin Airports’ Director of Operations/BBI, Dr. Manfred A. Körtgen, commented: “2011 is an important year for us. On the BBI building site the key construction phases are being completed and the new airport is gradually filling with life. By the time the trial runs start in November, all the main elements have to be functioning smoothly; the trials will ensure that they are carefully coordinated and fine-tuned”, said Körtgen. “Today, as you walk through the central terminal hall, the marketplace and the baggage handling system, you can already tell that what is being built here is a state-of-the-art airport for the region surrounding Germany’s capital city.”

Building work at the new terminal continues to make rapid progress: at the moment the floors are being laid, the facades for the jetways installed and the interplay between all the different components of the baggage handling system are being coordinated. In the terminal departure hall the installation of the check-in areas is progressing to plan, and visitors can already see exactly where passengers will be checking in their bags after 3 June 2012.

In addition to the work inside the terminal, work in the other areas of the airport also continues as scheduled. In the Airport City the cranes are busy and the multi-story car parks are gradually emerging. Large sections of the new south runway have been completed and the runway and navigation lights will be tested in April.

For the latest developments visit www.berlin-airport.de

This week, ITB Berlin will take place in Berlin, bringing travel and toursim professionals from around the world to meet and discuss their latest initiatives.

Source: BTN