Design & construction
“With a midfield terminal and a central circulation axis for rail and road traffic as the ideal key elements, we established – at a very early stage – important structures for flexible future developments,” says Paap. “Our design and the current master plan of the airport company, with the main handling facilities around the airport city, take account of that. As long as the chosen organisational system is adhered to, nothing can go wrong.”
The terminal hall, which sits above the intercity and regional railway station, forms the centrepiece of the airport. With a large cantilevering roof – covering the forecourt on the landside, the check-in area and security controls, and the visitor terrace on the airside – the building is spacious and airy, and flooded with natural light. “Terminal 1 is and remains the core, and the landmark of the entire facility that can be seen from afar,” says Paap. “Another design element is the regularly spaced colonnade structure of the drop-off and pick-up zones, which are repeated in the facades of the pier buildings and extensions. The generous proportions and clear layout of the terminal hall, together with the colonnade motif, embody the transition between architecture and landscape, and are the style-defining elements of the new airport.”
He adds that areas like the check-in zone and retail arcade feature maximum room heights, because good orientation is crucial in these spaces. On the other hand, the control areas need a certain amount of screening, which is why the room height is lower.
Future Airport /
www.futureairport.com
“We felt that clear circulation routes and the atmosphere in the passenger areas should have priority,” he says. “This has been achieved with the help of natural lighting and is further enhanced by walnut wood panelling and a light-coloured Jurassic limestone floor finish.”
Unfortunate timing
Through opening in the middle of a pandemic, the new BER has clearly not had the chance to fulfil its potential, or wow the number of passengers it was designed for. During its first three months of operation, only 700,000 passengers passed through its doors. By February 2021, the figure was down to 4,000 and 8,000 a day – a far cry from the 100,000 who visited Tegel and Schoenefeld combined each day pre-crisis.
Other than that, the first few months have gone quite smoothly, which – for the superstitiously inclined – might suggest its bad luck has been lifted. All signs suggest that, once the pandemic is over, the airport will play an important role in job creation and the economic recovery of the region.
“Everybody is hoping that things will change in the summer of 2021,” says Paap. “My feeling is that we won’t get back to normal public life before the spring of 2022. I also believe that aviation will take even longer to return to the pre-coronavirus level. In spite of that, and considering that Berlin Airport originally had the largest passenger volume in Germany, there will be a swift recovery. And that will continue in future, albeit perhaps at a reduced pace.” ●
15
BER was built to replace the city’s old Tegel and Schoenefeld airports.
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