Berlin’s newly opened BER airport will close one of its terminals on Monday due to a sharp drop in passenger numbers caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The closure is another blow to the airport, which took nine years longer than expected to build and is three times over budget.
BER has become infamous for planning allegations of incompetence, mismanagement and corruption after a series of scandals and incidents.
When it finally opened in October, passenger demand was expected to exceed the newly built capacity, prompting the renaming of the nearby aging Schönefeld airport as Terminal 5 of the new airport.
Schönefeld was built in East Germany in 1976. The airport was to be demolished to create a new government terminal.
After construction delays, it was intended for use as Terminal 5 until the completion of a Terminal 3 scheduled for 2030.
However, as the coronavirus pandemic reduces the number of passengers, authorities have decided to close the terminal pending a further notice.
Terminal to reopen
“We initially close for a year, then we will decide again,” said airport spokesman Hannes Stefan Hönemann. “If things go well, we’ll reopen the terminal.”
Passenger numbers in 2020 were only a quarter of the previous year, according to airport operators.
A vaccination center that has been set up in the terminal will remain functional and public transport links will continue.
The closure will save airport operators around 25 million euros ($ 30 million), according to a released statement.
Berlin Tegel, in west Berlin, closed its doors last year, while Berlin Tempelhof Airport closed in 2008.
aw / rc (dpa)
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Goodbye Tegel Airport!
Berlin Tegel TXL
“At the Otto-Lilienthal airport please” is not something a Berliner would ever say. It may have been its official name since 1988, but it’s simply known as Tegel, named after the neighborhood it’s located in. For 46 years, Berlin has been the gateway to the world. While the capital’s new airport, BER, finally opens after an 8-year delay, the reliable but chronically congested airport in North Berlin has had its day.
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Goodbye Tegel Airport!
Tegel’s heart is a hexagon
Tegel is considered an icon of airport architecture. Designed in 1965 by architects Gerkan, Marg & Partners (gmp) still unknown at the time, it was designed for maximum service. In order to allow for quick and orderly handling, they arranged the doors around a hexagon. The hexagon became the hallmark of Tegel, soon considered to be the most modern airport in the world.
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Goodbye Tegel Airport!
Clear alignment
Passing through the main hall with its few stores was quick. From there, the passengers were distributed to the gates which were located in a hexagon. With exactly two possibilities: to the left or to the right. Getting lost was impossible. Over the years, four more terminals have been added to cope with the growing number of passengers. But in vain: Tegel still burst at the seams.
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Goodbye Tegel Airport!
Number four in Germany
Tegel was needed and extensively used as an international airport. After Frankfurt, Munich and Düsseldorf, Tegel has become the fourth most important airport in Germany. It was designed to accommodate around three million passengers per year. In the end, he processed 24 million. The queue for check-in or for baggage collection has become the norm. A service? Not really!
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Goodbye Tegel Airport!
How it all began
Without the Cold War, Tegel probably wouldn’t exist. During the Soviet blockade of West Berlin in 1948-1949, the Allies supplied the population with an airlift. This soldier celebrates the 100,000th flight. The Tempelhof and Gatow airports were soon no longer sufficient. Thus, from August 1948, another runway was built in the French sector of Tegel – in just 90 days. Tegel was born.
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Goodbye Tegel Airport!
Tegel: the gateway to the western world
On January 2, 1960, Tegel entered service. To get to West Berlin, flights had to pass through the former East Germany. Air corridors have been specially designed for this purpose. A gateway to the world has opened for West Berliners. New York, Paris and London were suddenly very close. On June 30, 1967, the flight attendants of the French airline Air France were already welcoming the 25 millionth passenger.
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Goodbye Tegel Airport!
Special status
During the division of Germany, only the airlines of the Western Allied Occupying Powers were permitted to fly to and from West Berlin. This special status did not end until German reunification in 1990, when Deutsche Lufthansa was also able to visit Berlin for the first time. Another historic moment.
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Goodbye Tegel Airport!
Unforgettable moments I
In addition to civilian flights, there were also military planes that continued to land there, but exclusively for state guests and members of the federal government. The visit of the 35th US President John F. Kennedy in June 1963 remains legendary. He was greeted by Berliners with indescribable jubilation and captured their hearts with his declaration: “Ich bin ein Berliner”.
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Goodbye Tegel Airport!
Unforgettable moments II
When state guests like British Queen Elizabeth II arrived, protocol was essential. Red carpet, a Bundeswehr honor guard and a 21-shot salute. The queen was often invited to Tegel. She has visited Berlin seven times; her last state visit was in 2015. Her son Charles, grandchildren William and Harry and Princess Diana also walked the red carpet here.
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Goodbye Tegel Airport!
Unforgettable moments III
The whole of Germany witnessed the return of the German national football team in 2014 after winning the World Cup in Brazil. Fans thronged on the visitors’ terrace. The plane on the team’s arrival was greeted by airport firefighters with water fountains – and of course, the red carpet was rolled out for the national team as well.
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Goodbye Tegel Airport!
TXL Nostalgia
Tegel was heavily criticized – too full, too noisy, too unfriendly, no metro connection and similar complaints. Nevertheless, in a 2017 referendum, a majority of Berliners voted to continue operating the airport alongside the new BER. Without success. BER opens and Tegel closes, that’s the deal. But Berliners will keep the memory of TXL alive.
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Goodbye Tegel Airport!
Tegel is dead, long live Tegel!
A new era will begin for Tegel in November 2020. It has nothing to do with theft. There are other plans for the airport site, which is just a 30 minute drive from the city center. A residential district of 10,000 people is to be built there, as well as a research and industrial park and a university campus. The future in Tegel can now begin.
Author: Anne Termèche
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