FINLAND. Airport company Finavia will unveil the new Terminal 2, the largest expansion project in its history, in 100 days from now, on 1 December. The opening will come in three stages, beginning with the entrance, arrivals hall and multimodal travel centre, followed between March and June 2022 with check-in points and a new security control area. In Summer 2023, new baggage drop facilities will be completed, as well as updated services in the Schengen gate area.
Finavia Technical Director Henri Hansson said: “The largest development project in Finavia’s history at Helsinki Airport will reach a significant milestone on 1 December. The airport’s new entrance and its beautiful wooden ceiling, new taxi ranks and bus station, a new parking hall, new multimodal travel centre, and the spectacular arrivals hall will be opened for passengers.”
Finnish nature as inspiration
Hansson added: “Finnish nature and craftsmanship are present from the spectacular ceiling of the entrance to small details around the airport. The guiding principle of the billion-euro development programme is Finnishness. The domestic content of the development programme is 90%.”
The wooden ceiling will change the face of the airport, said Finavia. One of the inspirations for the wavy form across the ceiling was Tapio Wirkkala’s Ultima Thule sculpture that is made of aircraft plywood.
Luoto, a nature-themed stone arrangement greeting arriving passengers, also combines “Finnish nature and archipelago spirit” in the terminal.
The urban travel centre is a hub for different modes of transport, to which air traffic will be connected.
“Finavia’s goal is to continuously develop better connections to the rest of the world. It is important that all modes of transport are seamlessly linked at the airport and that passengers can use the new travel centre to continue their journey using both local and long-distance buses, trains, taxis or private cars, not forgetting bicycles,” Hansson said.
Once the new parking hall P1/P2 opens it will create 1,800 spaces and 200 new charging stations for electric cars close to the terminal.
The aim of the investment programme is to strengthen the position of Helsinki Airport as a hub for air traffic between Europe and Asia, noted Finavia.
Finavia’s investment programme in summary
- Terminal floor area increased by +45% (103,000sq m), corresponding to an area the size of the Linnanmäki amusement park in Helsinki. The total area of the terminal in the early 2020s will be more than 250,000sq m, about ten times the size of the Finnish Parliament Houses.
- More bridge gates for airplanes: eight gates for wide-body aircraft (double the current arrangement) and four gates for narrow-body aircraft (an increase of +15%)
- Luggage handling capacity increased by +50%
- Passport control capacity increased by +50%
- Renovated apron area (aircraft parking areas and taxiways) amounts to 450,000sq m.
- Expansion of parking hall P5 (3,000 parking spaces) and a new parking hall (1,800 parking spaces)
- A new multimodal travel centre that links different modes of transport.
- Finavia’s investment: €1 billion