Issue 3/2005
05/02/05
Ben Gurion Airport – Terminal 3
Ami Lustig (ESL – Eng. S. Lustig Consulting Engineers Ltd., Tel-Aviv, Israel)
David Ben-Gurion International Airport (BGA) situated 20 km (12 miles) southeast of Tel Aviv and 50 km (31 miles) from Jerusalem, is the largest international airport in Israel. The airport’s 3-letter IATA airport code is TLV. The old terminal (Terminal 1) and runways built by the administration of the British Mandate of Palestine from 1935 to 1937 as part of a broad plan to lay down airports in Mandate-time (pre-State) Israel. Since then, the terminal building was constantly extended by the Israel Airports Authority.
Category: Issue 3/2005
Posted by: Editor
With 270 passengers on board, El Al Israel Airlines flight LY007 to New York disconnected itself from the boarding bridge at 1:15 p.m., Tuesday November 2nd 2004, making history as the first commercial flight to depart Ben-Gurion Airport’s new Terminal 3.
The majority of the international aviation traffic to and from Israel is carried out through Ben Gurion Airport. In 2003, approximately 6.8 million passengers passed through the airport on 53,400 international flights.
Encompassing 270,000 square meters (2.9 million sq. ft), at a cost of $ 1 billion, Terminal 3 offers 4,800 car parking spaces, 133 check-in counters, 84 passport control counters, three concourses, 24 boarding bridges, 24,000 square meters of duty free shopping space, 30 Otis Trav-O-Lators®, 41 Schindler escalators, 1 ThyssenKrupp escalator and 80 ThyssenKrupp elevators, the largest vertical transportation project ever designed in Israel, all in one of the world’s most innovative and advanced airport facilities.
The new terminal was under construction since 1997 and is one of the major infrastructure projects in Israel. It is build to service 16 million passengers a year comparing to the current 9 million passengers.
Since the establishment of the state of Israel and to the present day, the airport has served as the main entrance and exit gateway for the majority of passengers flying into and out of Israel.
In 1993 a conceptual plan crystallized, based upon which the Terminal 3 project was designed.
At the heart of the design – the establishment of a new terminal alongside the existing one, on former agricultural land; the development of land-based transportation; the creation of new access roads and construction of a railway track networked with the national railway system.
Terminal 3, comprising two main buildings (Land Terminal and Air Terminal), was designed and planned with remarkable originality, incorporating elements of authentic Israeli culture into the construction components.
The project was approved in 1994 by the Israeli Government, headed by the late Yitzhak Rabin, and declared a national enterprise.
The planned time schedule, as presented to the Israeli Government, was delayed due to a multitude of objections and delays in the approval of statutory processes. The National Outline Plan was finally authorized by the Israeli Government in June 1997, and thus the green light to embark on construction of the project was given.
A long-term objective stands at the basis of the initial design of the project: The handling of 16 million passengers annually at BGA. The achievement of this objective required extensive development of infrastructure, the incorporation of advanced technological systems, establishment of an aviation support area and the strategic and commercial development of consumer oriented services.
As part of the examination of possible alternatives, the designers were called upon, in conjunction with the representatives of the Airports Authority, to provide an optimal solution for infrastructure development, passenger baggage handling, maintenance, service and support of facilities etc. To this end, various optimal alternatives, that will achieve the stipulated objectives, were examined during the course of the process, taking costs and the period of execution into account.
A number of international design companies were requested to submit proposals for the programmatic design, based on the conceptual plan. The execution of the design was carried out in coordination with Airport functionaries, taking future passenger volumes and various operational requirements into account.
The symbolism of the terminal as the main air gateway of the State of Israel is echoed in the design which reflects Israel’s cultural and architectural heritage.
The innovative project was uniquely designed. Its concept, features, components and structure produced one of the most advanced and impressive airports in the world.
Construction work began in May 1998, with the selection of the earthworks and subterranean, infrastructure contractor.
Approximately 30 main contractors were involved in the construction of the project, the majority of which were Israeli, all operating in close coordination and under strict supervision and guidance of the project management.
A spacious terraced garden has been laid out at the entrance to the terminal building, in which motifs associated with the Land of Israel from the coastal plain to Jerusalem, are predominant.
The garden contains seven terraces – the first simulates the coastal plain and the Mediterranean Sea, and trees and flora from the Land of Israel have been planted in the rest of the terraces, including: Palm trees, wheat, citrus trees, a wild field containing indigenous grass, an olive grove, lavender plants and cypress trees.
As a part of the roads and bridges system, a 3 tier bridge of about 850 meters’ length was constructed at the front of the terminal building, with each tier comprising 6 vehicle lanes.
This bridge was constructed in order to facilitate the access of vehicles picking up and depositing passengers directly at the terminal building. In addition, the bridge was constructed in such a manner that would enable future expansion of the terminal, should that be decided upon, without the need to rebuild it.
The road enables separation between the types of traffic at the terminal: the top tier is designated to serve outbound passengers, the middle tier is designated for public transport, including buses, taxis and internal shuttles, and the bottom tier is designated to serve inbound passengers.
Israel Railways inaugurated a new rail link between Tel Aviv and Ben Gurion Airport’s terminal 3. Sixty four trains a day are operating on the route both ways every 30 minutes. The new station which operates on Level S of the building is being served by 4 3,200 kg, V.V.V.F. drive, 1.0 m/s ThyssenKrupp panoramic elevators installed by Herouth Elevators Israel and 4 Schindler 9300 V.V.V.F. drive, 30°, 100 cm steps, 0.50 m/s escalators with safety brushes and “sleep mode” control, to conserve energy, installed by Schindler Nechushtan Israel.
The rail link to Ben Gurion Airport is an inter-urban line, in which Israel Railways has invested 371 million shekels ($ 82.5 million).
Terminal 3 is spread over a ground area of 1,700 dunam (425 acres) and its built up area is about 270,000 sq. m. (2.9 million sq. ft.)
The support areas comprise, inter alia, 3 catering operators, storerooms, 3 office buildings, 3 hangars for commercial aircraft and 3 hangars for private aircraft.
The new terminal has a commercial area of about 40,000 sq. m. (about 430,000 sq. ft) that includes shops, buffets and restaurants, bank branches etc. When designing the terminal, special care was taken to concentrate all duty free areas at the center of the structure, in order to achieve optimal use of the areas and the exposure of all outgoing passengers to the shops.
The area defined as a public area for passenger traffic includes Departure halls, Arrival halls, V.I.P. rooms and more. The operational and administration areas are areas defined as “Back of the House”, and include conveyor belt areas (the baggage sorting system, etc.), areas for mechanical equipment, security rooms etc.
The passenger handling process begins in the Check in Hall, which is illuminated by natural light. After undergoing the security check and checking in his luggage, the passenger passes through portals set in a massive, seven story high stone wall, and reach the Sky Hall and the Bye & Buy Mall.
An inclined glass wall provides a panoramic view of the scenery surrounding the Airport and overlooks the Airside building and aircraft parking apron.
After passing through passport control, the passenger enters the Connector which links the Landside building to the Airside building.
30 Otis 610 NPT, New Public Trav-O-Lators, with V.V.V.F. drive, safety brushes and “sleep mode” control, to conserve energy, were installed by Electra Israel in terminal 3 project, 4 of which (66 m each) are installed in the Connector, 2 for departing and 2 for arriving passengers.
After traversing the Connector, the passenger enters the Rotunda, the Terminal’s unique round hall, which is dominated by a fountain at its center and populated with a wide range of duty free shops, restaurants, coffee shops and additional service stations, such as the Mother and Child Room, games and a synagogue. The Rotunda is only a short distance from the boarding gates.
From the Rotunda, the passenger takes a route leading to the boarding gates. These are grouped in three concourses each containing 8 boarding gates.
The passengers will enjoy the comfort and novelty of boarding the aircraft through the Concourses, which are spacious exit foyers to which the boarding bridges are connected.
A panoramic view of the Airport and the scenery surrounding it can be seen from the terminal through a giant inclined glass wall, which is in itself a unique attraction. Inbound passengers can catch a glimpse of the Terminal through the windows of the aircraft taxiing on its way to one of the twenty four gates.
Upon entering the Airside building, inbound passengers will perceive transparent and inclined glass walls in each concourse. From there they will make use of the Trav-O-Lators to move down to the mezzanine level, while viewing the outbound passengers on the lower level.
The spacious and round mezzanine level overlooks the impressive and dynamic vista of the Rotunda – the Airside building – with its shops and restaurants, and impressive architectural design as well as the fountain at the center of the Hall.
Upon arriving at the Landside building, inbound passengers will pass through the passport control hall, baggage collection and customs and will finally be welcomed by their relatives and friends in the Greeters’ Hall. This hall was impressively designed and the visitors will benefit from a wide selection of restaurants, shops and additional facilities.
49 Large, spacious ThyssenKrupp elevators, including eighteen units, 6000 kg, 1.0 m/s, V.V.V.F. drive, W332B machines, 2:1 roping, front and rear 2000 mm four panel, center opening doors, “jumbo” Dewhurst fixtures conforming to EN 81/70 and synthesized voice announcements, were installed by Herouth Elevators Israel in the new terminal allowing for passengers easy moving around the terminal with luggage and trolleys.
20 Schindler 9300, 30°, 0.50 m/s V.V.V.F. drive, escalators with safety brushes and “sleep mode” control to conserve energy are installed in the 7 levels Landside Building in addition to the 17 installed in the 3 levels Airside Building enabling the easy move of passengers between the different levels of the terminal.
The 152 elevators, escalators and Trav-O-Lators that are installed in Terminal 3 and listed in the table above, are monitored from the ramp control room by 3 advanced and most sophisticated monitoring systems.
3/2005
