Incheon International Airport breaks ground on USD2.5bn terminal 2

South Korea's Incheon International Airport stated (26-Sep-2013) it broke ground on terminal 2 on 26-Sep-2013. Gensler, as the collaborating design architect with the HMGY (Heerim-Mooyoung-Gensler-Yungdo) Consortium, designed the USD2.5 billion project to be constructed in two phases. When complete, the 72-gate, 7.4 million sqft terminal will effectively double the airport's size. The project comprises a second airport control tower, train station, parking facilities and an airside Intra Airport Transit (IAT). The second passenger terminal aims especially to meet a possible surge in international travellers ahead of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games. The expansion plan, the third of the airport's three-phase construction project, will be completed by 2017. Prime Minister Chung Hong-won commented, "Incheon Airport has become a northeast Asian hub that contributes to the national economy. The new construction project will create some 93,000 jobs and 17 trillion won in economic benefits." Terminal 2 will incorporate sustainable technologies including indoor green spaces that will feature natural daylight, waterfalls, koi ponds and streams intermingled with luxury lifestyle centres and boutique shopping. The terminal will be an energy-efficient building that uses photovoltaic cells to capture energy from the sun alongside skylights to minimise electrical use. The flooring will use locally quarried granite and traditional Korean wood. New amenities include VIP lounges, a landside shopping and retail district, aircraft observation deck, a transfer hotel, sculpture and exhibition areas and also gardens. The retail lifestyle centres offer double-level shopping and remote duty-free pick up of purchases from Seoul. [more - original PR]