Berlin Brandenburg Airport

This article is about a future airport for Berlin. For current and previous airports in Berlin, see List of airports in Berlin.
Berlin Brandenburg Airport
Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg
(under construction)
IATA: BER – ICAO: EDDB
Summary
Airport type Public
Operator Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg GmbH
Serves Berlin, Germany
Location Schönefeld, Brandenburg
Elevation AMSL 157 ft / 48 m
Coordinates 52°22′00″N 013°30′12″E / 52.36667°N 13.50333°ECoordinates: 52°22′00″N 013°30′12″E / 52.36667°N 13.50333°E
Website berlin-airport.de
Map
BER

Location at the Berlin-Brandenburg border

Runways
Direction Length Surface
m ft
07L/25R 3,600 11,811 Asphalt
07R/25L 4,000 13,123 Concrete

Berlin Brandenburg Airport (IATA: BER, ICAO: EDDB) (German: Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg Willy Brandt) is an international airport under construction, located adjacent to the current Berlin Schönefeld Airport in Schönefeld 18 kilometres (11 mi) south of the city centre of Berlin, the capital of Germany. It is intended to replace both Schönefeld and Berlin Tegel Airport, and to become the single commercial airport serving Berlin and the surrounding state of Brandenburg, an area with a combined 6 million inhabitants. With a projected annual passenger number of around 27 million,[1] Berlin Brandenburg Airport would become the third busiest airport in Germany, superseding Düsseldorf Airport, and one of the fifteen busiest in Europe.

Air Berlin, Germanwings and easyJet are expected to become the leading carriers at Berlin Brandenburg Airport, having announced the intent to relocate and keep their hub / base operations there which they currently maintain at Tegel and Schönefeld airports today.

Originally planned to open in 2010, Berlin Brandenburg Airport has encountered a series of delays due to poor construction planning, management, execution and corruption.[2][3][4] Unfinished construction and corrective work means an opening prior to late 2016 is unlikely.[5] Remarks made in August 2014, by airport CEO Hartmut Mehdorn, point toward 2017 or 2018.[6] Mehdorn announced no opening date as expected 14 October 2014, so a special commission established by the Brandenburg Parliament will retain oversight of the project.[7][8][9] Current estimates suggest that the airport will open in 2018 or 2019, at the latest.[10][11][12][13][14]

Citing dissatisfaction with construction progress, members of the airport board indicated during their 8 December 2014 meeting that they were beginning the search for a new CEO, although Mehdorn's contract runs through 2016.[15] One week later, Mehdorn announced he would resign his position as soon as the board names a successor, but no later than June 2015.[16][17]

Current total costs amount to €5.4 billion.[18] Additional plans suggest additional costs amounting to an extra €2.19 billion. Although the airport has yet to open, officials are planning a possible third runway for approximately €1 billion and other new projects such as an additional terminal, expanded baggage system and another freight facility. The total additional spending would amount to €3.2 billion.[19] The board warned of a further rise in costs because the airport will not open before 2017. The current time-cost frame is limited to 2016 though.[20]

History

Aviation in Schönefeld

A view of the apron of Berlin Schönefeld Airport (1990).

Berlin Brandenburg Airport is located just south of Berlin Schönefeld Airport, which opened as an airfield to accommodate the local Henschel aircraft plant on 15 October 1934. During the Battle of Berlin, on 22 April 1945, Soviet troops occupied the airfield. In 1946, the headquarters of the Soviet Air Forces moved to Schönefeld from Johannisthal Air Field, and commercial flights (initially by Aeroflot) began.

During the following years, Schönefeld Airport became the most important civilian airport in the newly founded German Democratic Republic (East Germany), with national flag carrier Interflug based there. In 1976, the modern passenger terminal currently known as Terminal A opened.

Plans for a new Berlin Airport

Map showing the infrastructure of the Schönefeld area and the relationship between the new and old airports

Following the German reunification in 1990, Berlin once again became the German federal capital and leaders made plans to recognise the city's increased importance by constructing a large commercial airport, as Tegel Airport, Schönefeld Airport and Tempelhof Airport were aging and becoming increasingly congested due to rising passenger numbers. To ensure the economical viability of the project, they pursued the single airport concept, which meant that the new airport would become the sole commercial airport for Berlin and Brandenburg. As a consequence, they planned to close Tegel, Schönefeld and Tempelhof upon opening the new airport, and to ban commercial aviation from any other airport in Brandenburg.

On 2 May 1991, the Berlin Brandenburg Flughafen Holding GmbH (BBF) was founded, owned by the states of Berlin and Brandenburg (37 percent each) and the Federal Republic of Germany (the remaining 26 percent). Eberhard Diepgen, Mayor of Berlin, became the first chairman of the supervisory board. The holding company announced on 20 June 1993 that Sperenberg Airfield, Jüterbog Airfield and the area south of Schönefeld Airport — the final choice, were considered possible sites for the new airport, with each site advocated by various factions in the ensuing political discussion.[21] Concerning land-use planning and noise issues, rural Sperenberg and Jüterbog were considered more suitable for construction of a large airport. Economics favored an airport located near the city center with existing road and rail links (as it is the case with Schönefeld).[21][22]

On 28 May 1996, Mayor Diepgen, Minister-President of Brandenburg Manfred Stolpe and Federal Minister for Transport Matthias Wissmann committed to Schönefeld as the site for the new airport. This so-called consensus decision was later affirmed by the respective state legislatures.[23] The new airport will even use some infrastructure, such as a runway, from the current Schönefeld Airport.

Failed privatization

Originally, BBF hoped the new airport would be owned and operated by a private investor. They called for proposals, which led to two bidding consortia emerging as serious contenders. One was led by Hochtief, through its Hochtief Airport subsidiary, and included ABB, Fraport and Bankengesellschaft Berlin as partners. The other was comprised IVG, Flughafen Wien AG, Dorsch-Consult, Commerzbank and Caisse des Dépôts. On 19 September 1998, BBF announced that the Hochtief consortium had been granted the exclusive authority to negotiate the terms and conditions for an acquisition of the Berlin Brandenburg Airport holding and the construction and subsequent operation of the new airport for a 50 years period.[24]

On 31 March 1999, BBF officially commissioned Hochtief and its partners to construct the new airport, causing IVG to file a lawsuit. The Brandenburg Oberlandesgericht indeed acknowledged the concerns voiced by IVG. In its review, it found that in certain points, the assessment of the applications had been biased towards Hochtief, which led to annulment of the contract award on 3 August of that year.[25]

In a new attempt to receive the contract to construct and operate the new airport, Hochtief Airport and IVG teamed up and created a plan for a joint bid on 10 November 2000.[26] At the time, BBF hoped that the planning approval could be completed in 2002, with the tentative opening in 2007.[27]

When Hochtief/IVG submitted its bid in February 2002, the BBF board consisted of Manfred Stolpe, now Federal Minister of Transportation; Klaus Wowereit, who replaced Eberhard Diepgen as Mayor of Berlin and chair of the board; and Matthias Platzeck, who replaced Stolpe as Minister-President of Brandenburg. The board determined that the proposal would not be practical and voted 22 May 2003 to scrap the privatization plan.[28] Hochtief and IVG received approximately €50 million compensation for their planning effort.

Public ownership and construction permit

The new Berlin airport would be planned, owned and operated by BBF Holding, which became Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg GmbH (FBB) shortly afterwards, and remained under the ownership of Berlin, Brandenburg and the federal government. On 13 August 2004, the Brandenburg state ministry for infrastructure and regional policy granted approval for the development of Schönefeld Airport into new Berlin Brandenburg International Airport.[29]

A legal battle ensued, as local residents filed lawsuits against the ministry's decision. It terminated 16 March 2006, when the Federal Administrative Court of Germany rejected the residents' arguments, but imposed stipulations on the flight operations at the new airport.[30] Thus, the construction permit was granted only under the condition that once operational, the number of people living in the approach path would be lower, compared to the situation surrounding the three existing airports — Tegel, Schönefeld, Tempelhof.[31] Therefore, it was mandatory for Tegel and Schönefeld to close (Tempelhof was already decommissioned in 2008) once Berlin's air traffic is concentrated at the new airport.[32]

Financing

By 2006, the construction cost was budgeted at €2.83 billion, which FBB achieved by a credit raising of €2.4 billion, a bank deposit of €430 million by the FBB partners, and an additional €440 million of equity capital provided by FBB.[33]

During construction, it became clear that the airport would become significantly more expensive due to underestimating the actual costs in a too-optimistic calculation; construction flaws; and increased expenses for soundproofing nearby homes. The series of delays in opening is expected to lead to a number of lawsuits against FBB, which may result in large-scale damage compensation for the affected airlines and airport businesses. Air Berlin already announced its intention of such a move.[34]

By late 2012, expenditures for Berlin Brandenburg Airport totaled €4.3 billion, nearly twice the originally anticipated figure.[35]

Naming

The airport is named after Nobel Peace Laureate Willy Brandt, former Mayor of West Berlin and Chancellor of West Germany

During much of the planning and construction phase, the new airport was known as Berlin Brandenburg International Airport, abbreviated BBI. When the planned and missed opening date of 2 June 2012 drew nearer, the FBB launched a marketing campaign introducing the BER branding, reflecting the new airport code.

In 2007, the FBB board decided that Berlin Brandenburg Airport would be given a second name, honoring a person with a distinctive link to the city of Berlin.[36] On 11 December 2009, the decision was made in favor of Willy Brandt.[37] The Nobel Peace laureate of 1971 served as mayor of West Berlin from 1957 to 1966 and as West German chancellor from 1969 to 1974. Berlin mayor Klaus Wowereit and Minister-President of Brandenburg Matthias Platzeck, both members of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) which Brandt led from 1964 to 1987, led the effort to add Brandt's name to the airport.

Other suggested honorees included Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg; Albert Einstein and Marlene Dietrich, from members of the Christian Democratic Union; Gustav Stresemann, by the Free Democratic Party; and Otto Lilienthal, advocated by the Green Party.[36]

Construction progress

To make way for the new airport, two villages were removed. The 335 inhabitants of Diepensee received compensation and were offered new homes in Königs Wusterhausen, a move that was completed by late 2004. The 35 villagers of Selchow were resettled to Großziethen in mid-2005.[38][39]

After nearly 15 years of planning, actual construction work for Berlin Brandenburg Airport began 5 September 2006.[40]

In November 2007, the BER-Infotower opened, a 32 metres (105 ft) high public observation tower and information center.[41] The transparent and twisted structure, originally intended to be temporary, will instead remain once work is completed as part of the airport's visitor facilities.[42]

Construction of the terminal building began in July 2008.[43] On 8 and 9 May 2010, the airport celebrated topping out with open days at the airport site.[44] On 30 October 2011, the railway line and terminal station were ready for service, however until the opening no scheduled trains will operate.

Operating tests and service trials began 24 November 2011, based on the anticipated opening date of 3 June 2012. A total of 12,000 volunteers participated in simulated check-in, security screening, boarding and baggage claim. The tests used 15,000 pieces of luggage in the automated baggage processing system and covered nighttime operations and emergency scenarios.[45] This phase also saw the acceptance tests of various airport systems. It became clear 8 May 2012, that the building could not open on schedule due to failure of the fire protection system. All trials halted and have not resumed.

Delayed opening and construction flaws

Construction work as of July 2010

Timeline

The construction of Berlin Brandenburg Airport has suffered from continued delays. As of January 2013, FBB has announced and canceled four official opening dates.[3][35]

When construction of the terminal building began in 2006, FBB announced 30 October 2011 as the opening day for the new facility.[46] A few days after the 14 June 2010 topping out ceremony, FBB announced that construction deadlines could not be met, and postponed the opening to 3 June 2012. This was blamed to the bankruptcy of pg bbi, the construction planning company.[47] As the new date drew nearer, airlines amended their timetables to reflect their plans to operate from BER, and airport shops and restaurants prepared for the opening. As the airports in Tegel and Schönefeld were to close once the last flights of 2 June had been serviced, a major logistics operation for moving the airports' infrastructure was launched. Vehicles, equipment and supplies that were needed at Tegel until the final moments would have been transported to BER during the night of 2–3 June. To allow this, the authorities planned to restrict the highways linking the two airports (A113, A100 and parts of A111) for airport traffic only.[48] Rundfunk Berlin Brandenburg, the national broadcaster for Berlin and Brandenburg, scheduled 24 hours of continuous live coverage of the airport move.[49] A special Lufthansa flight to Frankfurt Airport, operated with an Airbus A380, was scheduled as the first departure from the new airport 3 June at 06:00.[49]

Just 26 days before the move, 8 May 2012, FBB again postponed the opening date, canceling moving plans and in some cases, reversing actions already completed. It cited technical difficulties primarily concerning the fire safety and smoke exhaust systems for the delay.[50] As a result, FBB dismissed Manfred Körtgen, the director for technical affairs, and replaced him with Horst Amann. It also announced 17 March 2013 as new opening date for BER, however, this was soon met by doubts due to the large number of construction flaws and problems that inspectors continued to find.[51]

In early September 2012, FBB further postponed the opening to 27 October 2013.[52] Again, media and experts were constantly voicing doubts and concerns about this deadline, most notably Peter Ramsauer, Federal Minister for Construction and Infrastructure.[53]

FBB announced 6 January 2013, that BER would be further delayed, at least until 2014, but did not announce a definite opening date.[35] As a consequence, Klaus Wowereit resigned as chairman of the supervisory board, and was replaced by Matthias Platzeck, who previously had served as his deputy. The board also dismissed Rainer Schwarz, the CEO of FBB, 16 January.[54] FBB named Hartmut Mehdorn, previously CEO of Deutsche Bahn (1999–2011) and Air Berlin (2011–2013), as Schwarz's replacement 8 March 2013.[55] On 8 January 2014, FBB announced the airport would not open in 2014;[56] and 24 February, Hartmut Mehdorn stated it would be unlikely the airport would open before 2016.[57]

On 20 March 2015, Mehdorn again faced questions from the Investigative Commission of Berlin's parliament although the previous week, Karsten Muehlenfeld replaced him as airport CEO.[58][59]

Construction failures

The major issue for the delayed opening is that the fire protection and alarm system in the terminal building was not built according to the construction permit, and failed the mandatory acceptance test necessary for the airport to open. FBB proposed an interim solution employing up to 700 human fire spotters which the building supervision department of the local Dahme-Spreewald district rejected. Inspectors have uncovered flaws concerning the wiring, programming and implementing of the highly complex system designed by Siemens and Bosch which automatically controls sprinklers, smoke extractors and fire doors.[3] For aesthetics, designers decided that the terminal would have no smoke extraction ducts on its rooftop. In case of fire, smoke would be pumped into exhaust ducts running below the structure, requiring the natural behavior of hot air to be reversed. Achieving this on the scale necessary for this airport is a unique undertaking and, thus far, this elaborate smoke extraction system has not worked as planned.[35] To meet the requirements for the fire system to pass the acceptance test, large scale reconstruction work might be needed.[60]

The insolvency of general planner Planungsgemeinschaft Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg International (pg bbi) and the dismissal of the Gerkan, Marg and Partners architects, who bore partial blame for the problems, had a widespread impact on construction. Inspectors have uncovered many examples of poor workmanship due to a lack of proper supervision and documentation, most notably concerning the wiring. Reports have surfaced about cable conduits which hold too many cables or in incompatible combinations, such as phone lines and high voltage wires. A total of 60 kilometres (37 mi) of cooling pipes were allegedly installed with no thermal insulation. To correct this, the demolition of numerous walls may be necessary. Furthermore, exterior vents appear to be in improper locations, allowing rain water from the western façade to enter them.[60] The 18 km (11 mi) long exhaust system to remove smoke from a fire is leaking.[61]

The initial design for the main hall, known as "monster" to construction workers, called for a single exhaust system. Revised plans call for multiple systems controlled by 90 km (56 mi) of wiring. As of 19 May 2014, Siemens has not yet designed the wire harnesses.[62] These problems are forcing the initial construction budget to skyrocket.[35]

BBI sought to open the north pier for use by three to ten flights per day as a test, though other parts of the airport will not be operational for some time. It requested that Technischer Überwachungsverein (Technical Inspection Association, TÜV) review the facility for safety and compliance to Brandenburg building codes. In its assessment report issued 29 July 2014, TÜV found that some lightning rods were missing and that the back-up generator powering the sprinkler system did not provide adequate power. One source with the TÜV stated, “What the airport ordered was sufficient for a circus tent, but [if power fails] not for the dimensions of the terminal.”[63]

When Mehdorn testified before the Investigations Commission of the Berlin parliament in March 2015, he stated that redesigns to the correction of the exhaust system will not be complete until "after the summer break" and that the terminal will not be finished until "March/April".[58] To resolve the smoke ventilation problems with "the monster", it is being divided into several smaller systems and ducts added to clear smoke from inside the terminal.[64]

Airport overview

Planned layout of the airport 2012

Runways

Berlin Brandenburg Airport will have two parallel runways. With a spacing of 1,900 metres (6,200 ft), these will allow independent flight operations without interference from wake turbulence.

The northern runway of BER is the southern runway of the old Schönefeld Airport, and has been in use since the 1960s. To adapt to the new airport, it has been renovated and lengthened from 3,000 to 3,600 metres (9,843 to 11,811 ft).[65]

The newly built southern runway has a length of 4,000 metres (13,123 ft) and was officially commissioned 31 May 2012. Until the opening of Berlin Brandenburg Airport, it is closed per NOTAM.

Air traffic control

The air traffic control tower of Berlin Brandenburg Airport (2012).

The Deutsche Flugsicherung is responsible for air traffic control and apron control at Berlin Brandenburg Airport. At 72 metres (236 ft), the control tower is the third highest in Germany (only surpassed by Munich Airport and Düsseldorf Airport). On 25 March 2012, the new tower opened replacing the former facility at Schönefeld.[66]

Passenger terminal

The main pier
Terminal layout (from left to right: level 2, level 1, intermediate level Z and level 0)

The U-shaped terminal building of Berlin Brandenburg Airport was designed by gmp architects, which previously designed the hexagonal Terminal A at Tegel Airport, opened in 1974. At BER, the terminal sits between the two runways, creating a so-called midfield airport above the underground train station. The terminal has four public levels designated 0, 1, 2 and 3.

The check-in area is located in the public area at Level 1 and houses 118 counters organised in eight clusters, called check-in isles. Planners anticipate that a significant number of passengers will use the more than 100 self check-in machines which will be installed.

The airside area will be accessible only to ticketed and screened passengers. Securitas Germany will staff the 35 screening stations. BER is equipped with 25 jet bridges, with another 85 aircraft stands on the apron. The boarding and arrival areas are divided into three piers with the main pier at 715 metres (2,346 ft) long and the north and south piers at 350 metres (1,150 ft) each. The main pier contains 16 jet-bridges; all but one have two levels, thus separating arriving and departing passengers. Level 1 is intended for Schengen passengers (gates A01–A20, B01–B20), while Level 2 (gates C01–C19, D01–D17) is for non-Schengen passengers.[39] Eight of the gates can accommodate wide-body aircraft and one gate has been designed to accommodate the Airbus A380, the largest commercial airliner currently in use. The apron has sufficient space to allow installation of a dual jetway allowing a quick boarding and disembarking process. A mezzanine (Level Z) at gates A21–22 and B21 allows for additional pre-boarding security checks for high-risk flights to the United States and Israel. Air Berlin, Lufthansa and Air France/KLM will operate airport lounges in the main pier, which will also be open for passengers of the respective alliance partners.[67]

The main hall of the terminal

The south pier is reserved for near-exclusive use of Air Berlin and its Oneworld partners and contains nine single-storey jet bridges (gates A30–A38). The north pier features a more minimalist design compared to the other two piers, meeting the demands of low-cost carriers and has no jet-bridges, but walk-boarding-gates (B30–45) with direct apron access.[67]

Cargo and general aviation

The initial module of the midfield cargo facilities has a capacity of 60,000 tonnes (59,000 long tons; 66,000 short tons) of cargo per year. With the completion of all planned expansions, this could handle up to 600,000 tonnes (590,000 long tons; 660,000 short tons) per year. The general aviation terminal is located in the northern part of BER.

Airport tourism facilities

The Infotower is a 32 metres (105 ft) observation tower located adjacent to the northern cargo terminal. It includes a museum and a gift shop, and is the only portion of the airport currently open to the public. FBB also offers guided tours of the airport which have grown in popularity since the delayed opening.[68][69]

Aircraft maintenance

The two large hangars at BER will be used by Lufthansa and Air Berlin respectively. Both provide enough space for maintenance work on four to five narrow-body aircraft.[70][71]

Government use

The air transport wing of the German Defence Ministry (Flugbereitschaft), responsible for government flights, will move to Berlin Brandenburg Airport from its current base at Cologne Bonn Airport. It operates a fleet of Bombardier Global Express, Airbus A319, Airbus A310 and Airbus A340-300 VIP configured aircraft.[72] The Bundesanstalt für Immobilienaufgaben (Federal Agency for Real Estate) is planning to construct a terminal on the northern edge of the airport for use by government officials and to welcome foreign dignitaries during state visits. The glass-and-wood building is expected to be completed by 2016. The former Terminal A of Schönefeld Airport is serving as an interim terminal.[73][74]

Access

Rail

Map of future bus and rail connections into and around Berlin. An express line will serve the Berlin Hauptbahnhof in 30 minutes.

The terminal connects to a 3.1 kilometres (1.9 mi) east-west railway tunnel under the apron and the terminal complex. As the nine tunnel sections were the first structures to be built, they were constructed by conventional excavations.

A railway station with six tracks forms the lowest level of the terminal.[75] Two tracks serve as a terminus for the S-Bahn – with the S9 serving the northern and the S45 serving the southern public transit ring, while the other four tracks handle EuroCity, InterCity, Intercity-Express and Regional-Express trains.

Deutsche Bahn confirmed in August 2011 that multiple daily Intercity-Express and InterCity trains will connect the airport to Bielefeld, Hannover, Hamburg, Dresden, Leipzig, Halle, Wolfsburg, as well as EuroCity trains connecting to Wrocław and Kraków in Poland, Amsterdam in the Netherlands and Prague in the Czech Republic.[76]

About half of the passengers are expected to access BER by rail. An express line (Regionalbahn) will connect the airport with the Berlin Hauptbahnhof (Berlin main station) in 30 minutes.[77] Two more stops, Potsdamer Platz and Berlin Südkreuz, will be part of the Airport Express, which is planned to make the distance in just under 20 minutes by 2015, when a new train track will be inaugurated.[76] Over 10% of passengers are expected to come from Poland, also thanks to upgraded highways on the Polish side of the border, making the airport accessible for air travellers from the western regions of that country.[78]

Bus

Public transport connections at the new airport will include numerous bus services. Express buses X7 and X11 will connect BER and U-Bahn Rudow of underground line U7, every five minutes. The X11 bus continues to Lichterfelde-West and to Dahlem. Other bus lines also stop at a number of stations, providing connections with Berlin’s public transport network and destinations in Brandenburg.

Road

Map of motorways in Berlin

The Berlin Brandenburg Airport is connected by its own exit to the freeway A113, which carries traffic into Berlin to the city freeway A100 and out to the outer city freeway ring A10 where it continues south as the freeway A13 in the direction of Dresden. The highway 96a along the north side of the airport is being expanded to four lanes towards Potsdam.

Four car parks and a car rental centre will be completed by the opening of BER. Around 10,000 parking spaces will be available in four multi-storey car parks.

Projected passenger volume and expansion plans

Since the German reunification, air traffic in Berlin has grown greatly. In 1991, the combined passenger volume of the city's airports was at 7.9 million per year. By 2014, this number had risen to 28 million.[79] When Berlin Brandenburg opens, it will have a capacity of 27 million passengers per year.[1] It may be expanded by up to two satellite concourses, bringing the terminal capacity to 45 million with runways capable of accommodating 50 million passengers per year. The two satellites, located on the apron parallel to the main pier and linked by tunnel, are included in the construction permit of Berlin Brandenburg Airport, meaning they could be built at any time without further regulatory hurdles or the possibility of third-party objections. A possible third runway could be located in the south, though no such plans exist to date.[80]

Operating hours

Due to noise protection regulations enshrined in the operating licence of Berlin Brandenburg Airport, no take-offs or landings are allowed between midnight and 0500. The Federal Administrative Court of Germany rejected a lawsuit by residents aiming to extend this night flight ban from 2300 to 0600 on 13 October 2011. It was also ruled that affected residents should be provided with additional installed noise insulation.

Expected airlines and destinations

Map of scheduled intercontinental destinations offered at Berlin Tegel Airport in 2012

Air Berlin will move its primary hub from Tegel to Berlin Brandenburg. As a member of the Oneworld global airline alliance, Air Berlin requires airport facilities capable meeting the demands of its connecting passengers which Tegel cannot provide.

With the expected opening of BER 3 June 2012, Lufthansa greatly expanded its presence in Berlin at its interim facilities at Tegel Airport by adding several intra-European destinations.[81] Over the coming years, Lufthansa plans to have all European flights that do not originate or terminate at either Frankfurt Airport or Munich Airport operated by its Germanwings subsidiary, which will likely become one of the largest tenants at BBI.[82]

EasyJet will become the leading low-cost carrier at BER in terms of routes served, relocating its current Schönefeld base. If their respective plans concerning Berlin services do not change, Germania and Condor would each have an aircraft base at the new airport.

Projected traffic data

Combined total passengers at Berlin Tegel and Berlin Schönefeld Airports in 2010[83]

Air Berlin (left) and Germanwings (right) are expected to become the dominant carriers at BER
EasyJet (left) and Germania (right) plan to base aircraft at the new airport
Destination Airport(s) Passengers
 Germany, Munich Munich
1,816,693
 Germany, Frankfurt Frankfurt
1,610,372
 Germany, Cologne/Bonn Cologne Bonn
1,379,294
 United Kingdom, London Gatwick, Heathrow, Luton, Southend, Stansted
1,281,842
 Germany, Stuttgart Stuttgart
985,857
 Germany, Düsseldorf Düsseldorf
930,865
 France, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Orly
884,195
  Switzerland, Zurich Zurich
802,464
 Spain, Palma de Mallorca Palma de Mallorca
584,709
 Austria, Vienna Vienna
554,663
 Turkey, Antalya Antalya
435,545
 Netherlands, Amsterdam Amsterdam
432,187
 Russia, Moscow Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo, Vnukovo
431,007
 Turkey, Istanbul Atatürk, Sabiha Gökçen
406,063
 Spain, Madrid Madrid
397,646

Commercial and exposition area

Berlin Air Show (ILA)

Visitors to the Berlin Air Show watching a flight display of an Airbus A320 (2012)

On 3 July 2012, the Berlin ExpoCenter Airport opened on the southeastern portion of the airport grounds.[84] Messe Berlin operates the 250,000-square-metre (2,700,000 sq ft) exposition facility which is primarily intended as the site of the biennial Berlin Air Show.[85]

Airport Information Center

Coinciding with groundbreaking for construction of the new airport, an information and public relations center called airportworld opened near the old Schönefeld Airport. On 14 November 2007, the Infotower, a 32 metres (105 ft) public viewing tower containing an exhibition about the new airport, opened on the BER construction site.[68]

Business park

The area surrounding BER is zoned as a commercial district. Plans call for the construction of shopping centers and parking structures as well as industrial, commercial and office spaces. Situated directly at the terminal complex will be the BER Airport City with an area of 16 hectares (40 acres). Marketing of the real estate began in autumn 2006 and beginning in 2009 offices, hotels, car rentals, four parking decks with a capacity of 10,000, restaurants and retailers were built here.

To the north is the BER Business Park Berlin with a planned area of 109 hectares (270 acres) for industrial and commercial use as well as congress centers. A further Business Park North was proposed as a future use of the area of the old Schönefeld terminal. However, so far there are no definite plans for the future use of this area.

Controversies

In September 2010, the Deutsche Flugsicherung published aircraft arrival and departure paths for Berlin Brandenburg Airport, which significantly differ from earlier ones used in the court decision for the construction permit. In the original maps, aircraft were expected to take off and land in a path parallel with the runway. The new plans saw flight paths that deviate from the runway direction by 15 degrees. Therefore, aircraft would now fly over areas in southern Berlin (Lichtenrade, Steglitz and Zehlendorf) and adjacent Brandenburg (Teltow, Stahnsdorf, Kleinmachnow and Potsdam) to the surprise of local residents, which prompted a wave of protests and a lawsuit which the courts rejected.[86]

Both the expansion of Schönefeld Airport into BER and the quality of the connection to the railway network are the subject of public debate. The Bürgerverein Brandenburg-Berlin e.V. represents local residents who protest an expansion of air traffic to and from the south of Berlin. Also, traffic and environmental experts criticise the late completion dates for the fast connection to the Berlin Hauptbahnhof. Still, Berlin Hauptbahnhof will be only a 30-minute journey with trains departing every 15 minutes upon inauguration. By 2020, this should be reduced to 20 minutes after reconstruction of the Dresdner bahn.[87]

Due to the rising passenger numbers of the Berlin airports and the delays of BER, concerns were voiced that the new airport might be too small as Tegel and Schonefeld airports saw 1 million more passengers in 2014 than Brandenburg airport's design capacity, especially the area housing check-in. Also, there are doubts about its economic viability once opened.[3]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Mangasarian, Leon (14 March 2013). "Berlin Airport Fiasco Shows Chinks in German Engineering Armor". Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
  2. ↑ Hansen, Holger; Marsh, Sarah (6 January 2013). Tim Dobbyn, ed. "New Berlin airport further delayed to 2014". Reuters. reuters.com. Retrieved 2013-01-07.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Eddy, Melissa (7 January 2013). "Mayor to Leave Panel Overseeing Delayed Berlin Airport". The New York Times. Retrieved 2013-02-02.
  4. ↑ "Korruptionsverdacht auf BER-Baustelle: Mehdorns Desaster ist perfekt" [Suspicions of corruption at BER construction site: Mehdorn a complete disaster]. Der Spiegel. 28 May 2014. Retrieved 2014-05-29.
  5. ↑ von Bullion, Constanze (23 October 2013). "Verloren in der Entrauchungsmatrix" [Lost in the smoke extractor matrix]. Süddeutsche Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 2013-10-24.
  6. ↑ "Mehdorn verplappert sich: "2017 oder 18"" [Mehdorn flubs it... 2017 or 18!]. Berliner Kurier. 11 August 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-11.
  7. ↑ "Rechnungshof: Flughafen-Aufsichtsrat mit Fachleuten besetzen" [Court of Auditors: Fill Airport Board with experts]. Berliner Zeitung (in German). 15 October 2014.
  8. ↑ "Landtag will erneut BER-Sonderausschuss einrichten" [Parliament wants to install new BER Special Commission]. Lausitzer Rundschau (in German). Retrieved 2014-10-15.
  9. ↑ Schon, Michael (14 October 2014). "Landtag will weiter über den BER reden" [Parliament wants to talk about the BER]. Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg (RBB) (in German).
  10. ↑ "Mehdorn plant den Abflug Spätestens 2019 soll der BER eröffnen" [Mehdorn seeks movers for shift to BER 2019 at latest]. Die Tageszeitung. 17 August 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-19.
  11. ↑ "Pannen-Flughafen BER: Steht die Eröffnung erst 2018 an?" [The Defective Berlin Airport: Will it open before 2018?]. The Huffington Post. 18 August 2014. Retrieved 2014-09-10.
  12. ↑ "Streit beim Flughafenbau: Berliner Flughafen BER trennt sich vom TÜV" [Dispute over Airfield Construction: TUV gets fired]. Huffington Post. 19 August 2014. Retrieved 2014-09-10.
  13. ↑ Wedekind, Olaf (12 August 2014). "Geht Berlins Pannen-Airport erst 2018 an den Start?" [Will Berlin's Defective Airport Open before 2018?]. Bild. Retrieved 2014-09-10.
  14. ↑ "Pannen-Flughafen BER: Eröffnung rückt in immer weitere Ferne" [Defective BER Airport: opening moves further and further away]. Focus (in German). 22 November 2014. Retrieved 2014-12-01.
  15. ↑ "Neuer Chef für Berliner Flughafen gesucht" [Looking for New Chief of Berlin airport]. n-tv (in German). 8 December 2014. Retrieved 2014-12-08.
  16. ↑ "Hartmut Mehdorn tritt als Airport-Chef zurück" [Hartmut Mehdorn resigns as chief Airport]. Bild (in German). 15 December 2014. Retrieved 2014-12-15.
  17. ↑ Fritsche, Andreas (15 December 2014). "Scheitern programmiert: Andreas Fritsche ist dennoch überrascht von Mehdorns Rückzug" [Programmed Failure: Andreas Fritsche is still surprised by Mehdorn withdrawal]. Neues Deutschland (in German). Retrieved 2014-12-15.
  18. ↑ "Mehdorn will weitere 1,1 Milliarden für Pannenflughafen" [Mehdorn wants additional 1.1 billion for defective airport]. Stern (in German). 10 April 2014. Retrieved 2014-12-01.
  19. ↑ "Fahnenmast und Brandt-Statue Weitere Milliardenausgaben für BER geplant" [Flag pole and Brandt statue BER plans for further additional spending]. n-tv (in German). 2 November 2014. Retrieved 2014-11-03.
  20. ↑ "BER-Aufsichtsrat warnt vor noch höheren Kosten". manager magazin. Retrieved 2014-12-16.
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 Appenzeller, Gerd (2 December 2011). "Die Akte Schönefeld – 1989 bis 1996" [The Schönefeld Act - 1989-1996]. Der Tagesspiegel (in German). Retrieved 2014-07-28.
  22. ↑ Alberts, Heike C.; Bowen Jr., John T.; Cidell, Julie L. (12 June 2008). Missed Opportunities: The Restructuring of Berlin's Airport System and the City's Position in International Airline Networks (PDF). Taylor & Francis.
  23. ↑ "Konsensbeschluss zur Tempelhof-Schließung" [Consensus decision for the closure of Tempelhof]. Der Tagesspiegel (in German). 18 June 2007. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
  24. ↑ Schümann, Timm (19 September 1998). "Hochtief baut in Schönefeld" [Hochtief expands in Schönefeld]. Die Welt (in German). Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  25. ↑ Neumann, Peter (20 May 2003). "Pleiten, Pech und Pannen in Schönefeld" [Bad luck and mishaps in Schonefeld]. Berliner Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  26. ↑ "HOCHTIEF AirPort und IVG wollen Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg International gemeinsam realisieren" [HOCHTIEF AirPort and IVG want to build Berlin Brandenburg International Airport jointly] (Press release) (in German). Hochtief. 10 November 2000. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  27. ↑ "Großflughafen Berlin nimmt offenbar Kartell-Hürde" [Berlin airport apparently takes antitrust hurdle]. Handelsblatt (in German). Reuters. 2 February 2001. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  28. ↑ "Privatisierung von Hauptstadt-Flughafen gescheitert" [Privatization of Capital Airport Failed]. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). 22 May 2003. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  29. ↑ Government of Brandenburg (13 August 2004). "Planfeststellungsbeschluss des Landes Brandenburg für den Ausbau des Flughafens Berlin-Brandenburg International" [Resolution for the spatial planning of BBI by the state of Brandenburg] (in German). Potsdam. Retrieved 2010-07-22.
  30. ↑ "Can a New Airport Make this City Soar?". Der Spiegel. 16 March 2006.
  31. ↑ "Planfeststellungsbeschluss zum BBI des Brandenburgischen Ministeriums für Infrastruktur und Raumordnung" [Resolution of spatial planning for BBI] (PDF–501KBYTE) (in German). Brandenburg Ministry for Infrastructure and Spatial Planning. 13 August 2004. pp. 327–328, 355. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
  32. ↑ "Urteil des Bundesverwaltungsgerichts BVerwG 4 A 1073.04" [Ruling by the Federal Administrative Court of Germany, paragraph 193] (PDF) (in German). Leipzig. 16 March 2006. p. 86. Retrieved 2014-08-02.
  33. ↑ Newmann, Peter (7 October 2008). "Noch nicht gebaut und schon teurer" [Not yet built and already more expensive]. Berliner Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  34. ↑ "More Fire Safety Problems: Berlin Airport Faces Further Possible Delays". Der Spiegel. 12 November 2012. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 35.2 35.3 35.4 "October Launch Scrapped: Berlin Airport Opening Delayed Yet Again". Der Spiegel. 7 January 2013. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 "The Name Game: What Should Berlin Call Its Airport?". Der Spiegel. 18 October 2007.
  37. ↑ Beikler, S.; Kurpjuweit, K. (12 December 2009). "Berlin bekommt einen Kanzlerflughafen" [Berlin gets a chancellor airport] (in German). Berlin. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  38. ↑ "History: Berlin Brandenburg Airport Willy Brandt". Berliner Flughafen-Gesellschaft mbH. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 "Press Kit" (PDF). Berliner Flughafen-Gesellschaft mbH. p. 16. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  40. ↑ "BBI: Wowereit attends groundbreaking ceremony". City of Berlin. 5 September 2006. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  41. ↑ "BBI-Infotower". Berliner Flughafen-Gesellschaft mbH. Archived from the original on 19 August 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2010.
  42. ↑ "Infotower". Berliner Flughafen-Gesellschaft mbH. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  43. ↑ Jacobs, Stefan (3 July 2008). "Start frei für das Terminal". Der Tagesspiegel (in German). Retrieved 2014-09-10.
  44. ↑ "Berlin’s new BBI airport: Topping-out ceremony for the terminal" (Press release). Berliner Flughafen-Gesellschaft mbH. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  45. ↑ "Annual Report 2011" (PDF). Berliner Flughafen-Gesellschaft mbH. p. 14. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  46. ↑ "Two years of construction work on the new Capital Airport BBI: "We are right on schedule"" (Press release). Berliner Flughafen-Gesellschaft mbH. 4 September 2008. Retrieved 2014-07-19.
  47. ↑ Fülling, Thomas. "BER-Start um mehr als ein halbes Jahr verschoben" [BER launch postponed more than six months]. Berliner Morgenpost (in German). Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  48. ↑ "Mega move to new Berlin Airport begins". The Local. 11 April 2012. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  49. ↑ 49.0 49.1 "Coverage of the airport move" (Press release) (in German). RBB. 30 April 2012.
  50. ↑ "New Berlin Airport Won't Open until March 2013". Der Spiegel. 17 May 2012.
  51. ↑ Gubisch, Michael (17 August 2012). "Berlin expects Brandenburg costs to overrun by a third". Flightglobal. Retrieved 2012-07-29.
  52. ↑ "New Berlin Airport to Finally Open Next October". Spiegel Online. 4 September 2012. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  53. ↑ Stampfer, Christian (27 December 2012). "Opening of Berlin Brandenburg International Airport Delayed to 2014". Frequent Business Traveler. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  54. ↑ "Berlin airport CEO fired after delays to opening". Yahoo News. Associated Press. 16 January 2013. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  55. ↑ "BER-Überraschung: Mehdorn wird Chef des Berliner Flughafens" [BER surprise: Mehdorn is chief of the Berlin airport]. Der Spiegel (in German). 8 March 2013. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  56. ↑ "Berlin airport's 2014 opening cancelled again". The Local. 8 January 2014. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
  57. ↑ "BER öffnet vielleicht erst 2016" [BER opens maybe in 2016]. Berliner Zeitung (in German). 24 February 2014. Retrieved 2012-08-06.
  58. ↑ 58.0 58.1 "BER soll Baukosten in 25 Jahren einspielen" [BER to recover construction costs in 25 years]. RBB (in German). 18 March 2015. Retrieved 2015-03-21.
  59. ↑ "Flughafen-Chef Mühlenfeld beginnt mit der Arbeit" [Airports CEO Mühlenfeld starts working] (in German). Retrieved 2015-03-21.
  60. ↑ 60.0 60.1 Amann, Melanie; Scherff, Dyrk (13 January 2013). "Die geheime Mängelliste" [The secret list of defects]. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  61. ↑ "Zeitung: Brandschutzanlage am BER undicht" [Newspaper: Fire protection system at BER leaking]. Yahoo! News (in German). 18 May 2014. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  62. ↑ "666 – Number of the Beast". Die Tageszeitung (in German). 18 May 2014. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  63. ↑ Wehmeyer, J.C. (1 August 2014). "Raten Sie mal, was am BER jetzt wieder vergessen wurde" [Guess what was forgotten at BER again this time]. Bild (in German). Retrieved 2012-08-06.
  64. ↑ Fraune, Burkhard (18 March 2015). "So-sieht-es-auf-der-BER-Baustelle-wirklich-aus" [How it really looks on the BER construction site]. Die Welt (in German). Retrieved 2015-03-21.
  65. ↑ "Closure of the south runway at Schoenefeld". Berliner Flughafen-Gesellschaft mbH. 12 October 2007. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  66. ↑ "Opening of the BER control tower". youtube.com.
  67. ↑ 67.0 67.1 Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg Handbuch (PDF). Berliner Flughafen-Gesellschaft mbH. Retrieved 2012-04-06.
  68. ↑ 68.0 68.1 "Infotower". Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg GmbH. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  69. ↑ Cottrell, Chris (10 April 2014). "In a Land of On-Time Arrivals, a Tour of Anything But". The New York Times. p. A9.
  70. ↑ "airberlin, Germania, Harder & Partner and Berlin Airports celebrate laying of foundation stone for first maintenance hangar at BBI". Airberlin.com. 21 March 2011. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  71. ↑ "Lufthansa Technik: Spatenstich für BER-Wartungshalle" [Lufthansa Technik: Groundbreaking for BER maintenance hangar] (in German). airliners.de. 21 June 2011. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  72. ↑ "List of civilian aircraft types operated by German Luftwaffe". airfleets.net. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  73. ↑ Paul, Ulrich (14 May 2012). "Bauverzögerung führt zu Mehrkosten" [Construction delay leads to additional costs]. Berliner Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  74. ↑ Schoelkopf, Katrin (27 July 2008). "Warum die Bundesregierung umweltschädlich ist" [Why the Federal Government is harmful to the environment]. Berliner Morgenpost (in German). Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  75. ↑ Business-on.de (21 November 2007). "Deutsche Bahn: Aufträge für Schienenanbindung Flughafen BBI vergeben" [Contracts awarded for rail link Airport BBI] (in German). Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  76. ↑ 76.0 76.1 Newmann, Peter (27 August 2012). "Schnell zum Flughafen geht es erst ab 2020" [Fast trips to the airport will come only after 2020]. Berliner Zeitung. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  77. ↑ Berliner Flughafen-Gesellschaft mbH. "Local and long-distance transport". Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  78. ↑ "Polen eröffnet neue Autobahn" [Poland opens new motorway]. Märkische Oderzeitung. 30 November 2011. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  79. ↑ ADV Monthly Traffic Report (PDF). Arbeitsgemeinschaft Deutscher Verkehrsflughäfen (ADV). 5 February 2013. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  80. ↑ "Tegel – the business airport". Berliner Flughafen-Gesellschaft mbH. Retrieved 2010-07-22.
  81. ↑ "Lufthansa is growing in Berlin" (Press release). Lufthansa. 10 November 2011. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  82. ↑ Flottau, Jens (11 October 2012). "Lufthansa Transfers Most Short-Haul Flights To Germanwings". Aviation Week. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  83. ↑ Luftverkehr auf allen Flugplätzen [Traffic at All Airports] (PDF) (in German). Federal Statistical Office of Germany (Destatis). 28 July 2011. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  84. ↑ "Berlin ExpoCenter Airport built in record time" (Press release). Messe Berlin. 3 July 2012. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  85. ↑ "Groundbreaking ceremony at new ILA grounds" (PDF) (Press release). BDLI. 18 August 2011. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  86. ↑ Warner, Mary Beth (3 November 2011). "Resistance Builds to Planned Flight Paths at New Berlin Airport". Der Spiegel. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  87. ↑ "Reisezeitverlängerungen für Airport-Express-Reisende" [Longer travel times for Airport Express travelers]. Berliner Zeitung (in German). 26 August 2011. Retrieved 2014-07-29.

Bibliography

External links

Media related to Berlin Brandenburg Airport at Wikimedia Commons